The Highways are jammed with broken heroes
by polarbear117
Summary: She has gotten used to most of his quirks, like his demand that she pushes her tooth paste from the back of the tube, or that he talks to his so-called ‘guns’ during the shower that one was very, very awkward at first " Rating went down to T, due to lang.
1. Chapter 1

_Heya, first-time writer here, so take it easy. I had this plot stuck in my head, I ain't the greatest writer, but I figured I'd give it a try…_

_Summary: Puck and Rachel get out of Lima for a while…._

_Disclaimer: nothing's mine, if it were, I imagine I'd not be a poor student stuck in the cold right now :P_

For him, leaving seems to be the only option to get out of this sinking ship that's become his freaking life. Just one year ago his life seemed to be alright, now it's too fucked up for him to live it anymore…

During school it's alright, because he's got Football and actual schoolwork to stop him from thinking about his fucked up life (yes, he does school –work, he's gonna get out of this cow town, even if it kills him, except maths, because, seriously, he's a badass).

But now it's summer ….He can't go to Finn's to play XBOX, because, well, last time Finn spoke to him he was punching his face in at the same time, so he figures showing up to play games in which people get killed and blood splatters is not the smartest move (he's a badass, not fucking insane, Finn's freakishly huge!). The Football-team and pretty much the whole school's got him pegged as the bad guy, so no one's even talking to him (which is sorta alright, because hey, he so doesn't give a shit about High School). Only option would be the Gleeks, and seriously, if he spends three months with Hummel, he's gonna end up wearing those freakishly tight pants and talking abot T-Zones and shit (and hey, he's a stud!). Cleaning pools is out as well, his mum overheard some cougars chatting in the mall…turns out Jewish mums really are freakishly good with guilt trips…

But he could deal with all that. He could deal without Finn, friends and cougars. What he can't deal with is seeing some douche-tard with a cleavers-haircut and shiny shoes offering his baby momma money to put his kid up for adoption….what he can't deal with is showing up one morning on Brit's doorstep to give Quinn some cash, and overhearing the Happy-Days-douchebag telling Quinn that he's found adoptive parents and he's ready to sign the paper-work so the stuff can be handled. Quinn sees him over the asshole's shoulder (his name's Christopher, but seriously, asshole fits better) and her eyes go freakishly wide. Puck just stands there, while the dude has yet to notice him. When the dude gets it, he turns around and looks at him. It's scary silent, suddenly.

"That true, Quinn?" is all he can say. Because honestly, saying more than that just seems too hard.

She opens her mouth, but can't really seem to look at him. She sputters for a while and he gets it. All of a sudden he can't stand anymore and just falls into the couch. Quinn's crying and shouting at him how she was scared… turns out, douche-tard is some guy from Sunday school Quinn's been banging behind his and Finn's back….turns also out, she was already pregnant when she fucked with him that night (Wine coolers, my ass!)

Without further ado, he turns and leaves. He barely hears Brittany asking him what's wrong, just gets in his truck and drives off.

But he could even deal with that, finding out that that little piece of Life that he thought he was responsible for, that he busted his ass to take care of, that he fought for, got beat up for and was basically put through hell for, isn't his…he could deal with feeling like somebody ripped his fucking heart out and jumped up and down on it.

The thing that breaks him, that just proves too much, is coming home that night after a whole day of driving, to find his fucked-up dead-beat of a dad sitting in the living room, grinning up at him like he didn't walk out seven years ago. For a few seconds he just stands there, looking at the bag of shit that beat on his mum and him more than once, and took off when his mum announced she was pregnant with his kid sister. He suddenly feels this numbness creeping up his legs. It's on autopilot he goes to the kitchen and listens to his mum saying how he's changed, it's on autopilot he goes upstairs, starts throwing clothes in his bag, grabs a tooth brush and some other stuff, his wallet, keys and jacket, throws the stuff in his truck and drives off. A few hours later he thinks his fucking autopilot might be broken….because how else could you explain that Noah "Puck" Puckerman ends up standing in front of Rachel Berry's Front Lawn at 3 in the morning, throwing stones at her window and waiting for the lights to go on…

_So, whaddaya think? Read and review people, not sure if I manage to keep this thing going with uni-stress, if it's any good, but I'll try_


	2. Chapter 2

_Wow, thank you guys so much for the great reviews! Yeah, I agree, first Chapter was a lil short, but I just wanted to get the plot out there before it got lost in the incredibly busy life that is studying European Studies ^^ _

_Btw., I'm grateful for any title-suggestions_

_As for where they're going, I'm not sure yet, NYC was original Idea, but one big roadtrip might be more fun, not sure yet. _

_Disclaimer: They ain't mine, darn it!_

_Chapter Two: Rachel's side_

For Rachel, the motivation to leave lies with something different. Sure, her leading man is ignoring her as well, despite her innocence in this conundrum the Gleeks found themselves in, but she is sure that this is merely a rough patch in their destined romance, only a small hiccup which will make their story all the more dramatic when told to their adoring fans and children (Though lately she's begun to wonder whether a simple boy is worth all this drama…). No her motivation lies with three simple things:

Bad Thai Food, Late Night TV and the simple fact of life, that even future Broadway stars and role models like her are prone to reckless behavior at 3 in the morning….

Her Dads are gone for their weekly date night, so Rachel pretty much does her routine of either ordering pizza or eating leftovers and watching a musical on cable. Somewhere between heating up the Pad-Thai from a few days ago and watching James Fox climb buildings in New York, she fell asleep. The next thing she remembers, she is sitting in front of Larry King, who somehow looks a lot like an older version of Artie, answering questions about her new Show.

Of course, that in and of itself is nothing new, as an ingénue she has envisioned this moment many times, it is only a matter of time until she will have to give regular interviews. A bit of practice, no matter how unreal, can prove very helpful.

What is different this time however, is that after the regular questions such as what are her inspirations, (Barbara and Idina, of course) or where does she see herself going (Who knows? (a bit of mystery is important to keep the fans guessing)), he asks calmly, so, what was the biggest adventure in your life?

And she…

…can't answer. Dream-Rachel opens her mouth to answer but nothing comes to mind….nothing…of course, striking out on her own in New York seems appropriate but... so…_usual_.

So she just sits there, staring at Larry, hearing the audience start to chuckle, hears the whispers, but….NOTHING! She cannot think of a single experience she could utilize at this point.

So when Larry starts tapping is pen on the desk, she becomes more and more nervous, until she suddenly shoots up from the couch. Larry is still looking at her, yet his suspenders become decidedly less scary when a television screen is safely between them. Rachel mentally chastised herself for ignoring the slightly odd odour omitted by her dinner, before realizing that the tapping of Larry's pen is actually something at her window.

Taking a second to locate the baseball-bat given to her in case of emergencies by her fathers next to the window, she gets up and looks outside. And has to pinch herself, to make sure she is not still asleep. There, is Noah, Lima's resident gigolo for middle-aged ladies and self-proclaimed badass, standing on her front lawn, throwing pebbles and whisper-shouting her name.

"Berry! Hey, Berry!" Apparently he had not noticed the window open, because next thing Rachel knew, she felt a small pebble hit her square on the forehead.

"Noah! What is wrong with you?!?!? Do you have any idea what time it is?!?! If I am to be of any use to Glee, I need to give my Vocal Chords a proper nights' rest! And your interference with my REM-Cycle is most certainly not appreciated!"

"Can the crazy talk and open your front door, I gotta talk to you!" He shoves his hands in his pockets and looks up at her.

"I most certainly will not! It is the middle of the night, and for no apparent reason you have decided to make a nuisance of yourself! My fathers are out of town, do you have any idea what kind of consequences your inappropriate behavior could have if I were to let you into my House unsupervised?!?!" Rachel rants.

"So, that's a no?"  
"Of course that's a no. A most emphatic one…"  
"Alright, then stand back!"

"What, why?"

"Because I'm coming up!" In the dark she can see his broad shape take a few steps back and run towards the base of the tree next to her House. Before she can say anything, he had hoisted himself up unto the lowest branch and quickly climbed the next, before leaping through her open window.

"Noah! What are you doing?!?! You scoundrel! Who do you think you are, accosting me in the middle of the night! I'll scream if I have to!" Reflexively she grabs the bat and lifts it up. The only problem is, she has never been good at sports, so she doubts she can do much damage. Plus, her less-than-average height makes holding the bat extremely uncomfortable…

For his part, Puck calmly gets back up and smirks at the picture. Rachel Berry is standing in front of him, in a pair of shorts and a tank-top, wearing fluffy pink slippers (with fucking STARS on them!) and wielding a baseball-bat which is about the size of her entire upper body.

"Sheesh, calm down Berry! Nobody's accosting nobody!" He plucks the bat from her with one hand and sends her his signature smirk, eyeing the stars on both pants and shirt.

Rachel uncomfortably crosses her arms in front of her and gives him a weary look.

"What do you want?" and just like that, his smirk drops from his face and his shoulders slump. He sits down on her bed and scrubs his hands over his face.

"Noah? What's wrong?" she worriedly makes her way over to him and sits beside him.

He heaves a sigh.

"Come with me…"

"What?"

_What? _Is all he thinks. _Dude, you're tryin to leave this fucking town behind you! What the fuck are you doing dragging it with you? _But when he turns to her, prepared to make up some lame-ass story and get the hell out of town, he sees Rachel's big brown eyes looking up at him with worry. And suddenly it clicks. This is the girl he slushied every day for the past two years, who's High School Life he made fucking hell….the girl who somehow still managed to see his "leading man potential". That's why he's here. He can't do this on his own. He just fucking knows, if he's on his own this summer, he'll do something fucking stupid. Puck knows, he might be a badass, but hell, misery loves company, Bon Jovi knew that already…He needs someone who he can talk to, otherwise he'll end up driving in a ditch somewhere, someone who cares to stop him from screwing up his shitty life completely. And just like that he reiterates (and yes, she spent WAY too much time talking and not half enough time making out with him during their brief fling last year):

"Come with me." Sadly, for all her talents, Rachel isn't psychic, so she still looks at him confused and says:

"I beg your pardon? Where are you going?"

He heaves another sigh:  
"I don't know. Away. From Lima, from Ohio. Just for the Summer. I just can't do it. I can't. All that shit…I can't. Look, I know you got it all going for you, you got your Dads you probably got all the Gleeks rallying for fucking singing and dancing in the street and shit and you can think of a bunch of cooler things to do than this, but fuck it Rachel, you are the one good thing that happened to me this fucked up year, and I need you with me here. I know I screwed up, big time, but….please!" By the end he's fucking begging, and if he could just feel something else than that stupid numbness, he'd probably be crying right about now.

"Noah…I…" Rachel for her part is just overwhelmed. Her head is rushing with thoughts. She knew that despite appearances the whole Quinn-Finn debacle has not left him without its marks. She saw it, even if others did not. He looked more tired than usual, his shoulders slouched he shuffled through the hallways, not his usual cocky strut. In Glee his voice is quiet and hardly audible, sometimes he just mouths the words. But what is even more shocking is that his Mohawk is less defined, a sort of brown fuzz is starting to grow on his head, making him look even more ridiculous. As she looks at him now, she doesn't see Lima's resident bad boy and stud…she sees a boy who tried so hard to be a man, that the simple knowledge that he was just not ready was enough to break him.

With a soft sigh, she lays a hand on his shoulder.

"Noah…what about our parents? What about Quinn, and your child? How can you hope to reconcile with Finn when you are running away from your problems?" she says softly.

His harsh, cold laugh is not what she expects.

"That's not an issue, Berry. I can't talk about it right now, but….trust me, I'm not running away. I'll come back…I just can't stick around for three months full of this shit, only to have another fucked up year after that. I just need a fuckin' break!" he's out of breath by the end, and only her startled look clues him in to the fact that he shouted the last part. He forcefully breathes out and forces himself to push his anger back into that quiet little box in his head.

"But if you don't want to come, alright. I get it. I'm just a Lima looser, I'd drag you down with me." He manages a sad smile. "You got your Dads and stuff to stick around for." He gets up and makes his way over to the window and prepares to jump onto the tree again, when her voice stops him.

"Noah…wait!" He turns and looks at her. She is standing in her room, looking down. He swears he hears her mumbling "Stupid suspenders!" before she looks up at him and smiles.

"Give me twenty minutes." And all he can do is smile back and thank the stars that his autopilot is just as screwed up as the rest of him.

_So, that's the end of Chapter 2, bout twice as long as the first one, go me ;)_

_Hope to update soon!_


	3. Chapter 3

_Hey guys, sorry for the long wait, but I am right in the middle of exams, so….story is definitely growing on me. Thanks for all reviews the great title-suggestions, thanks to lady liberty for the actual title ^^ Bruce Springsteen is simply the best, I agree. _

_Disclaimer: Nuthin belongs to me, all property of Fox, Title is Bruce Springsteen Born to Run!_

_Hope you have as fun reading as I have writing ^^_

Four hours later it hits him just what they are doing. Or rather, what they aren't doing, because at this point he's pretty sure neither of them has any fucking idea where the fuck they are going. They're standing somewhere between Mansfield and Akron, in the middle of fucking nowhere, at a gas station, because even their impromptu road trip can't go on without gas. He's holding the gasoline-hose in his hand and pressing the lever, listening to the soft swishing sound of the gasoline rushing through the hose, into his truck. Suddenly it clicks, the truck's full, but with that single sound he feels the walls closing in on him, all of a sudden it hits him like a fucking truck….

Puck can't breath, he sinks to his knees, he chokes, but his lungs just won't fill with air. He feels his eyes start to well up and he squeezes them shut. Black spots are dancing in his vision and he can't even grasp a single clear coherent thought except for the fact that if he dies now, he'll never have left Ohio, which would really, really, _really _ suck….

Suddenly he hears her voice, as if he was underwater.

"Noah….hear me?...Noah?....eathe….got to ….breath…"

He focuses on her voice, on the feel of her tiny hands on his shoulder and his arm. Her face fills up his vision, he focuses on the two deep brown eyes which are boring into his. She takes a deep breath, and instinctively he does the same. The tightness in his chest eases somewhat. She keeps breathing, and he figures, he should just try and follow her lead, because she got them through sectionals with her breathing-shit….and suddenly he realizes what the hell he is thinking and tries to concentrate on the tingling feeling in his guns before he freaks out again. Slowly his vision focuses in on the asphalt under his hands. He can feel the gravel pricking into his palms. Her hands still haven't moved.

"Are you feeling better?" Her big brown eyes shine with concern.

He takes a deep breath and revels in the fact that he can still do that.

"Yeah….I think…." He sits down and leans against the tire of his truck.

"Wait right here, I will just quickly pay and then get you to the next physician in our vicinity!"

There is something comforting about the fact, that even when standing at some fucked up gas station in the middle of fucking Ohio, with the only dude she knew choking to death, Rachel Berry still talks like a fucking SAT-examiner could pop out of the friggin' woodwork and shout at her.

He starts to chuckle and is dimly aware that she's looking at him like he's lost it. He's on a road trip to nowhere with the chick he through slushies at for years and who makes him light himself on fire with hardly any money, hardly any clothes and no idea what the fuck he's gonna do when he gets to wherever they'll end up….he's fairly sure that he's way past losing it.

"Noah…?" There's uncertainty in her voice now.

He laughs and looks up at her. Puck holds out his hand, as if he wants her to pull him up, but instead he pulls her down when she grabs it and she tumbles into his lap. He can't help the smirk that flits across his face and briefly thinks about cracking a joke, but instead he just pulls her closer to his chest and tightens his arms around her. She feels his chest rumbling beneath her as he continues to chuckle at random intervals. Suddenly she feels laughter bubbling up, she has no idea why, or how but within seconds they are both sitting there, her in his lap and are in absolute hysterics.

After a few minutes they calm down and she shifts, so she can lean back against him.

There is silence for a few seconds, until he breaks it.

"I'm sorry Rach…." She twists and looks at him confused.

"What for?"

"For dragging you into this…." He looks apologetic.

She merely raises her eyebrows.

"Are you serious? Until your impromptu venture into my bedroom, I was anticipating a summer consisting of nothing more exciting than my tedious seasonal employment at the 7/11 on Main Street! I am here out of my own free will, and though I must admit that I have not been fortunate enough to have much experience regarding vehicle ventures to an unknown destination, I do believe that we shall have… "at this part she scrunches her nose" … fun until we get there, and most likely for the unspecified time period we shall remain at this destination."

He can't help but chuckle again. They are silent for a few seconds, until Rachel speaks up again.

"Noah…."

He knows what she'll ask, before she can go on, and can't help but tense.

Rachel feels it, and in a rare moment of social perceptiveness, changes her statement.

"You know, you can talk to me when you want to, right?"  
He relaxes.

"I know Rach. But not yet."

"Okay" she simply says, and gets up. She dusts off her legs and turns around, only to smack into the solidly muscled wall that is his chest. She looks up, way up, and he can't help but smirk down at her.

"Fuck, Berry, you're tiny!"

She scowls.

"I'll have you know, I am only one inch short of the average!"

"for a ten year old?" He teases

She simply smacks him on his chest, but instead of stepping back, he simply grabs her and throws her over his shoulder.

"Noah! You uneducated imbecile! Lower me this instant, you heathen!" She starts beating his back with her hands, but he continues walking.  
"Ya know, you're a whole lotta crazy in one tiny package, midget!"

She lets out an undignified squeal as he dumps her unceremoniously into the passenger seat and slams the door closed. With a wink, he shouts:

"There's a child car seat under the driver's seat, if you need it. Wouldn't want you missing the scenery! " He turns around and walks towards the building to pay. Even through the windows, he can hear her screaming at him. Puck grabs a bottle of water and some chocolate bars on the way out and quickly pays, before returning to the truck. Rachel is sitting there with her arms crossed and determinedly staring ahead. Puck's been in trouble often enough to recognize the silent treatment. But he also realized during the short week of dating Rachel that she doesn't do silent. So he simply gets in, stows the snacks in the glove compartment and roots around for a map. Still no word.

With a calm sigh he unfolds it and tries to figure out where they are and, more importantly, where to go. He figures, if he gives her the silent treatment at the same time, they'll cancel each other out and she'll crack sooner or later. He can see out of the corner of his eyes that she starts to fidget, and just knows how she really wants to take a look at the map. He still has no friggin' clue why she came with him, but he figures sooner or later she'll tell him, simply because she can't not tell him. Right now it doesn't matter though. Hopefully, they've got three months to figure things out. She starts shuffling her feet and tries to subtly lean over to glance at the map. As if by accident, he leans back and effectively turns the back of the map towards her. In truth he already knows where they'll go, a simple glance at the map showed him the perfect destination. With a smirk he cuts a glance at her, folds up the map and turns the ignition. Puck bets with himself that it'll take a maximum of five exits for her to start talking to him.

It takes four.

"Where are we going?"  
he grins to himself.

"You'll see"

"When?"

"when we get there…" He can feel her glower on the side of his face, but it only widens his smirk.

"Noah!" There's a definite note of warning in her voice now. He doesn't care.

"Berry?" His smug tone does nothing to calm her.

"NOAH!" He figures it shouldn't be surprising that of all people, Rachel Berry is able to speak in capitals.

"Yeeeees…?" She huffs and changes tactics.

"Noah? Would you kindly inform me of the decision you have taken with regards to our destination?" She says sweetly, batting her eyelashes at him.

He chuckles. Sweetly, my ass, he thinks. It feels like he's being threatened by one of his sister's stupid beany babies, all cuddly on the outside (and if ever asked in public he will flat out deny even knowing what a beany baby is), but when whacked repeatedly on the head with it, it can leave one hell of a headache (turns out, insulting Miley Cyrus when your sister has a nearly unlimited supply of projectiles is a baaaaaaaaaaaaad idea!).

"No." He grins at her.

Rachel narrows her eyes at him.  
"Fine!" She turns on the radio to some weird-ass show-tune station and promptly starts singing to whatever is on at 5 o'clock in the morning. Off – key….LOUDLY! Now he knows Berry can probably hit every note there is, so it's definitely on purpose. Annoyingly enough he also knows she can sing for a looooooooooong time. her lungs are freakishly large for someone so tiny (He knows, because not having to breathe for a long time can be fucking awesome during make-out sessions).

It's when Berry calmly butchers some emancipation bull-shit with a lot of high notes that he cracks. She is screeching for some guy to "Get out and stay out" and he can't take it anymore. The tunes alone make him want to reach for a cheese grinder and get rid of his ears, but the wailing coming from next to him proves to be too much.

He grabs one of the chocolate bars and slams it into her mouth right when she hits (and misses by a loooooooooong shot) one particularly long-drawn and high note. She looks surprised for a second, before she starts munching and gives him a smug smirk.

"Alright, fine! Stop the wailing! You sound like the fucking lovechild of Kurt and a cat got run-over by a lawnmower! We're going to New York, goddammit!"

The squealing that follows makes him want to wish that he had let her sing.

_I know, you guys were waiting for the big reveal, but it's coming, in the works sooner or later._

_As always, read and review, though I will update regardless of how often you review. _

_The polar bear_


	4. Chapter 4

Two hours later, Puck sees an Exit for a Diner and takes it, because a) he's fucking tired and b) the sun's rising, so he figures breakfast is in order. When he cuts the engine, he looks over to Rachel who is slowly waking up from her nap. She literally talked herself to sleep, yapping on and on about what to do in New York until she finally fell asleep. He didn't feel like waking her up a) because she looked pretty hot when she slept (he was a badass, he might be a bit of a pansy right now with crying half the time, but there was a line, the c – word wasn't even gonna be thought!) and b) _was he fucking crazy ?!?!?!?_ As much as Rachel meant to him (he wasn't even gonna think about that right now, he was too fucked up to do anything with someone like Rachel), he could do with an hour without Broadway tunes and fun facts about the Empire State Building _(AN: whoever gets the reference, gets a cybercookie (I mean the good ones, honestly!))_, because hey, they weren't fun!

"Hey, Berry, wake up!" He reached out and touched her shoulder softly. A snuffle was his answer, before her eyes popped open and she looked at him confused.

He had to smile at the soft look on her face, so different from the usual crazy people saw. He had only seen a few glimpses of calm Rachel during their week together, but he had liked it. A lot.

"Noah? Where are we?" Suddenly she seemed to remember everything.  
"Are we in New York already? If yes, I do apologize for the duration of my nap, even though rest is important for a young starlet such as myself, it was be terribly inconsiderate of me not to offer to share the burden and responsibility of driving this vehicle, though I have to admit that I have as of yet not learned how to best utilize a non-automatic gear shift, as it appears your car is equipped with. Nonetheless …" Truth be told, she'd lost him after I do, but there was something comforting about Rachel's rambling. The constant stream of big words was something that was just so … Rachel … that he couldn't help but smile.

"Berry, cool your jets, we're not even out of Ohio yet. Just gotta get some breakfast, or I'll starve at the wheel."  
She turned and looked at her surroundings for the first time.

"Oh.." A few metres from where they were parking was a road-side Diner.

"Come on, we ain't getting younger, and if you're waiting to grow until you can reach the door handle, I got news for you, it ain't gonna happen." With a smirk he got out of the car, walked around and opened her door. Rachel gave him a glare, though it was more amused than actually annoyed.

"To be perfectly honest Noah, I do believe the constant attempts to make fun of me due to my height have become rather tedious and lack a certain innovative approach."

He raised his eyebrows.  
"Berry, if you were trying to burn me, you gotta loose about half that sentence…"

"Well, excuse me for taking pride in an extensive vocabulary. Not everybody communicates with nothing but grunts and smirks like your football teammates!"

"Yeah, but we get what the other one's saying…you're like, not understandable and shit!" He waved his hand around, trying to illustrate his point.

"To be frank, Noah, I'd much rather be understood by the people who understand me, than degrade myself and my vocabulary by attempting to engage in conversations with Neanderthals throwing a ball across a field and trying to throw each other down. I doubt I could learn anything fruitful."  
By this point they had reached the doors, gone inside and sat down in a booth next to the window.

He leered at her, more out of habit than true sleaze.

"Trust me, babe, I could teach you a thing or two" He winked at her.

Rachel fought a blush.

"I don't think your ideas of teaching would require a lot of talking. Your reputation as stud" she wrinkled her nose at the word and Puck was again struck by how cu --- (HOT! HOT! HOT!) she was "is exceedingly exaggerated if you have to get instructions every time you attempt to have sex." Her reply struck him a bit speechless.

"Berry . . .did you just give me a burn?" He looked at her with a grin.

"Bazinga?" She grinned right back, with just a hint of pride.

Puck broke out laughing, Rachel following soon after. He suddenly realized, in the last few hours he had laughed more than in the last few months together. With a genuine smile he picks up a menu.

"What can I get y'all?" A cheerful Southern Drawl comes from the side.

With a smile at Rachel, he orders eggs, bacon, toast, whatever there is really, he hasn't eaten since Lunch the day before.

To his great surprise, Rachel copies his order, only adding and orange - juice instead of his coffee.

"Hungry much, Berry?" She blushes.

"I have a very fast metabolism, hence I require copious amounts of sustenance to retain a healthy weight."

He shoots her a lazy smile, that forces her to look down. What is it about this boy that just gets her to do things like jumping into a beat-up truck and driving to New York for the Summer, with no plan of what to do when they get there?

"No need to explain. It's sexy, babe…" He gives her a wink.

Rachel clears her throat and tries to focus on more pragmatic issues.

"So, do you have a plan on how to proceed when we arrive in New York?" She asks. One half of her hopes he does, because that would make things so much simpler. The other half hopes he doesn't because the exhilaration she derives from simply letting go is exciting and a whole new feeling.

He shrugs and sheepishly ducks his head.

"Not really. I mean, leaving was kinda spontaneous for me too, so…I've got about 300 bucks cash, plus some stuff on my bank account. Was gonna be for Quinn, but…" he suddenly trails off, looking very uncomfortable. She gently places a hand on his.

"It's ok, Noah. I told you, you can tell me whenever you are ready." He heaves a sigh.

"I know. Just…not yet, I have to…like, think and shit…" He shrugs again, and it strikes her suddenly that underneath all that bravado, he really only is 17, only a few months older than her.

Rachel pushes those thoughts aside, pondering Noah's emotional vulnerability would bring her nothing, and from their brief relationship (she refuses to call it a fling, because no one calls their first boyfriend a fling) she has learned that pushing Noah is never a good thing to do.

"I have about 50 Dollars in cash, and around 1000 on my bankaccount" She announces instead cheerfully.

He looks at her weirdly.

"Berry's got some dough, huh?"

"I have been working at the 7/11 every summer since the 9th grade, I was going to take a trip with friends after Senior Year, but well…" she trails off uncomfortably. It goes without saying that, while she might have the money, she doesn't have the company. He scrubs his hand over his Mohawk, a nervous habit he picked up.

"You know…I'm sorry." He looks down. Talking about feelings and shit doesn't come easy to him, in fact he'd rather jump into a swamp full with crocodiles buck-naked, but he figures, he owes Rachel more than an apology for all the shit he pulled, especially considering how important she is to him.

"I don't know why I slushied you back then. You were like, crazy n shit…" She just sits there, sensing instinctively that if she interrupts him now, he'll clam up and just pretend everything's fine.

"You were this crazy person, and you had like talent and shit. And you always talked about how you were gonna get out of Lima and Ohio and shit. And I just knew, I couldn't. I'll always be a Lima Looser, and you…you're Rachel Berry, you were larger than fucking life….so I figured I'd take you down a little, show you where you belong. I mean, in school I'm actually somebody, you know?" he looks up at her, and the vulnerability in his eyes shocks her a little.

"But then I got to know you, and you're, like, cool and stuff. And you believed in me, nobody's done that before. And I know I was an ass back then and that that doesn't make the stuff I did ok, and I'll probably always be a jerk, but…you asked if we could be friends, so, I'm wondering, that still on?" The look in his eyes is so hopeful, she almost starts to cry. Rachel places her hands on his and squeezes.

"Oh Noah…I accept your apology. As for the friends – bit, I have considered you a friend since you joined Glee club." She smiles at him when he perks up and beams at her, with such happiness.

For his part, Noah can't help himself. He doesn't know what this thing with Rachel is, but as he said, she believed in him, which is more than most people do, even more than Finn, though he was probably right to do so. Anyways, in his books, that counts for something. At that moment, he vows to try his hardest to make it up to her, he knows years of slushies and putting her down are going to be hard to erase, but maybe, just maybe, he can overwrite it and get her friendship back. That one week he felt like he could have a normal life, and he really wants that feeling back. But he knows it's too soon, he's in no place to give something to anyone, simply because he has nothing left to give. He wonders if you can mourn the loss of a person that never really existed. He loved his daughter, he truly did. The simple knowledge that she isn't his, it's gonna take time for him to get whether or not what he feels is loving that kid regardless of who the dad is, or if it's just feelings left over from his little daughter. Until he's in the clear, there is no way he can start anything with anyone, especially not with someone like Rachel. He gives her hands a last squeeze and pulls his out from hers, making room for the breakfast coming their way. It smells delicious and only now does he really realize how hungry he is. The rest of their time at the Diner is spent devouring the food, before getting back on the road. They briefly argue over who drives (he refuses to let her near his baby, with her having no clue how to handle a stick, she argues he will crash them sooner or later, being as tired as he is, he argues he won't , he's a badass!, it ends much like last time, him picking her up and seatbelting her to her seat before she gets much chance to point out the ridiculousness of his statement), and are back on the road by 9 am.


	5. Chapter 5

_Here we go again!_

_Disclaimer: U know the drill, none of it is mine ^^_

At 10 am he crosses the state-line into Pennsylvania, and is disappointed when he doesn't feel the elation he expected at being out of Ohio. He says as much, and his rewarded with a confused look from Rachel.

"Well, what did you expect? A parade in your honour?"

He shrugs.

"I dunno, something different I guess…shouldn't it be like a raid of packages or summin?"

It takes her a few seconds to get that one.

"What are you, the mailman? It's rite of passage, noah!" She shoots him an exasperated glare. He smirks, of course he knew that, he might not be a MENSA-candidate, but he's not Finn or Brittany, thank you very much.

"Yeah, that. I just figured it'd be like this big thing, you know? Like, becoming a man… I guess I thought I'd…feel more…isn't the first time supposed to be special?" He is confused, how did he turn from talking about becoming a man to such a whimp?

Next to him, Rachel starts cracking up.

"Noah. . .I am sorry, but the first time is often not as you expect it to be…it can even hurt!" She pants out between uncontrollable giggles.

He just looks confused and goes over their conversation in his head.

"What…but…you know that's not what I meant!" He fumbles. Not his best comeback, he admits.

Rachel continues to giggle. The sound makes him smile.

"You know, one could even say, you lost your state-line-virginity to me" Rachel chokes out before breaking into laughter again.

"What . . . I. . ." he fumbles for a reply before he belatedly settles on one.

"That's the only one you'll ever get. I'm a stud, you know…"

Somehow it makes her laugh even more.

"Let me be sure to warn the border patrols then, they won't know what hit them…"

He grumbles, still not quite sure how to make Rachel stop.

Oddly enough he finds, he doesn't really want to. He's never really seen her this happy, or carefree. Of course, Puck knows that in Lima she didn't really have all that much to be happy about. The football-team, including him, made sure of that. Plus, he knows that the Glee – kids haven't been exactly easy on her either. He knows that while Matt, Mike, Brit, Artie and Tina might be her friends, Kurt and Mercedes would just as well kick her out if it weren't for her talents, not to mention Quinn and Santana. Finn's a whole different story, but just thinking about the guy makes him half angry, half sad, so he figures to just live in the moment. With a genuine grin, he looks over at her, and notices that her amusement has dimmed down to some odd giggles.

"Glad to see I could amuse you" he grumbles good-naturedly.

She places her small hand on his biceps.

"Aaaaw, Noah, don't be offended, soon we'll be in New Jersey, it just takes some practice…" she gives him a mischievous smile.

He harrumphs, finally accepting that this is going to hunt him for a while.

The next few hours are passed with idle conversation and the odd battle over the radio station (she finds his ignorance of Broadway tunes appalling and claims that this has to be rectified, if he wants to survive New York, he argues she has to learn to appreciate the classics like Aerosmith or Hendrix, if she wants to survive this car ride . . . he wins).

When it's nearing noon, and they get close to Clearfield, Pennsylvania, Rachel suddenly shoots up from her slouched position in the passenger's seat and starts chanting "Oh my God" really fast.

As a reaction Puck nearly brings them straight to the big guy, by narrowly avoiding driving into oncoming traffic.

After his heart stops pumping and he can loosen his grip enough to turn towards her, he growls.

"Berry. WHAT. . .THE. . .FUCK!" Now he's found her secret. Enough anger works just like verbal Capslock.

"I totally forgot to call my Dads!" She franticly digs around in her backpack and pulls out a pink, bejeweled cell-phone. Puck is just waiting for Unicorns and rainbows to follow.

"Oh my god, I turned it off!" In panic, she fumbles around until finally a beep signalizes that it's up and running.

She groans.

"15 missed calls, they'll kill me!" Suddenly he starts to worry. What if her Dads make her come back? What if they come and get her? The fear being stuck alone starts clawing its way back up. He can feel his stomach churning at the idea.

He focuses on calming his breathing. In – out – In "Yes, hey Daddy…" – out – "no, I'm f…" – In "yeah, I. . ." – out

He keeps going, trying not to listen too closely to the phone call next to him. It's harder than he thought, because Rachel's Dad is shouting loud enough for Puck to get a pretty good idea of just how angry the man is.

"A friend needed me, Daddy…."

He still gets this tingling when she says he's a friend.

"Yes, I know it was rather abrupt, and I do apologize for not leaving you a note, but Noah…"

Uh-oh, he wishes she hadn't mentioned his name. . . well, maybe there is more than one Noah in Lima's jewish community (he's pretty sure there isn't, but he'd rather take his chances with Luck than with an irate father whose daughter's bedroom he invaded at 3 in the morning and whisked away on a 650 – mile road-trip to one of the most dangerous cities on the planet . . .actually, that sounds kinda cool, like a pirate or some shit. Like Johnny Depp in Pirates of the Caribbean. . . That dude was so badass, he could pull of Eyeliner!)

"Noah Puckerman. . .yes, from Glee . . ."

He's screwed…

"He needed my help and asked me to accompany him on a . . ." she looks at him for a second, before talking to her father again. He is sorta shocked when he sees how calmly she lies to her dads.

"College trip. We are going to look at East Coast Colleges, you know how important preparation is when making a decision as vastly important to life as the one where to complete one's higher education. It would be simply devastating if I were to end stranded with bleak prospects of a brighter future, all merely because I failed to prepare with adequate thoroughness prior to deciding with finality on an institution. It is instrumental, even obligatory for a young student such as myself to ascertain which of her options is the most beneficial to her particular field of study as well as interest and which caters to her individual needs to ensure the broadening of herself, in both character, emotional health and physical appearance?"

And that's when Puck discovers another one of Berry's tricks. No wonder the debate-team was at its best when she was in there (and no, it's not like he looked through the yearbook to see what were her classes, just so he could conveniently be in detention across the hall and catch glimpses of her all riled up in her tiny skirts, the book simply fell open at that page. Shut up.) She simply talked. Too. Much. No wonder she won pretty much every argument, nobody could remember what the hell she was saying in the beginning when she was done.

"We don't know yet, Daddy. . . well, NYU would be interesting for both me and Noah . . . Columbia too, I suppose . . . Of course I'll take a look at Julliard!. . .well, it was really more of a spontaneous decision. . . No, it is more than alright if you go to Aunt Mildred's, she probably needs you right now . . . Noah will protect me, I'm sure" he can't help but preen a little at that.

"I will be back on Monday" He looks at her confused and opens his mouth to speak, but she lifts a finger.

"Yes, I know. But I will miss you, too. I am sorry for Aunt Mildred. . . No, I'll be more than fine for the Summer. . . Yes Daddy. Yes, Noah and I might also look at other Colleges later during the holidays, so do not worry if you cannot reach me. No, I'll be fine. Yes, love you too." She hangs up and looks at him with a Cheshire cat grin.

For his part, he's just confused as hell.

"Colleges? That's . . ." Puck is simply overwhelmed by the deviousness that is Rachel Berry.

Rachel suddenly looks unsure.

"I am sorry, I couldn't think of anything, and I don't want to pressure you, but my dads are really strict, and I had to tell them something, and I figure if we are already in New York we could look at NYU anyways, and then it would technically not constitute lying, and if you like it, you could actually apply and then it would not be lying but actually the truth because you did decide during this road-trip and I already know I'll be attending Julliard as soon as possible, but I figured sensibly I would keep my options open, and my fathers are not going to be there, because my Aunt fell and broke her hip, so now she will need help for the next few months or so and she lives in San Francisco and they are leaving and staying with her for the Summer and I figured if we get back before they come back they never have to k now I spent my Summer in New York and it would be safer that way because if I never told I would not have to lie and so . . .I'm sorry" she looks down meekly.

Puck is still trying to find his voice. Not only did Goody-two-shoes Rachel Berry just lie to her parents with a skill that could even surpass his, without breaking a sweat, the lie was even pretty believable. Not only that, she actually believed he could attend a college on the East Coast. He couldn't stop the grin that spread on his face (he was also starting to get really annoyed by that. If he didn't get this smiling-thing under control, he'd start tap dancing and singing like Hummel…).

"Berry, Chill." He says, noticing the down-cast look on her face.

"I was just gonna say . . ."

"Yes?" She looks hopeful.

"Fucking genius!"

_And that ends chapter 5, people…whooo, three chapters in one night, I'm on fire ;)_

_Next update coming soon, finally reaching their destination ^^_


	6. Chapter 6

_Chapter 6_

_This one's a lil short, but the next one's longer again. As always, they ain't mine, I'm just taking them out to play, except for the few OCs you see popping up._

When Puck finally sees the Brooklyn Bridge, he starts shaking Rachel like crazy. It only takes her a few seconds to go from sleeping like a log to wide-awake. Her eyes grow wide as she takes in her surroundings and she smiles so wide Puck worries her face might split. Then he realizes he is grinning just as madly. He can't help himself and lets out a loud whoop. They are both laughing like crazy. They still have no idea what they're going to do, they'll need a job, they'll need a place to sleep, Puck's got to get some different clothes at one point or other, and he knows before sun-down they'll need some food as well. The money they got can only last them so long. But somehow, it's all pretty much irrelevant when they are looking at the clear blue sky and see the skyline on the other side of the river.

With no real plan or aim where to go, they drive around the outskirts of the city for a while, until Noah stops the truck in a parking spot in front of a diner.

He gets out and before he can even think of getting Berry's door, she appears next to him, buzzing and yapping like a Chihuahua on speed. With raised eyebrows, he grabs her by the shoulder and steers her towards the door.

The Diner turns out to be a nice, typical Diner, clean, with a family-like atmosphere. Puck pushes Berry towards the bar and sits her down on one of the chairs before plopping down next to her.

In the middle of her rant about fun facts about the Brooklyn Bridge (seriously, she's sounding like a friggin travel brochure!), he can't take it anymore.

"Berry, I'm begging ya here, I've been driving for 10 hours, I haven't slept for nearly two days, and I need food. Please, can you pleaaaaaaaaase stop talking…" His head is pounding like crazy.

Instead of going on a rant like he expected, she just gives him a sheepish smile and squeezes his biceps.

"Of course, I apologize. I will go and fetch us a Newspaper." She gives him a soft smile and, to his shock, brushes a soft kiss to the side of his head. It reminds him of times when everything was simpler, back when he was in middle school and his mum would always kiss his forehead while he sat in the kitchen eating his dinner after he came home from school. When his Dad was somewhere far away, when Finn was his best friend, Quinn was just some girl and Life was just fucking easy going.

She pats his head and bounces off to the Newspaper stand. He can't help but follow her with his eyes.

"She your girlfriend?" The question comes from the guy standing behind the counter, wearing an apron. Puck turns around and looks at him questioningly. They're roughly the same age and he can't help but notice that this guy looks a bit like this Toby-guy from West Side Story (Musicals equal make-out time, he was bound to pick up something or other). He doesn't like the way this dude's eyes follow Berry. He might not have actually done anything about it yet, but he'll be damned if he lets some spiffed-up douche from New York makes move on his girl.

"Something like that" he replies tightly and glares at the guy, whose nametag says Jerry.

Jerry lifts his hands.  
"Chill, dude, no harm intended" his thick New York Accent confuses Puck for a second.

"It's alright" Jerry grins and holds out his hand.

"I'm Jerry, or Jay, by the way" Puck shakes it.

"Puck" he replies.

"So, what can I get ya?"

"Coffee, Cheeseburger and fries?"

"Sure thing, and for your girl?"

Puck ponders for a second.  
"The same, but coke instead of coffee."

"Coming right up" Just as Puck is enjoying his first few sips of coffee, Rachel bounces back to his side, carrying a newspaper with her.

"Noah, it is imperative we find shelter for the night, as I do believe while the climate might be adequate for us to survive outside in your vehicle, it would be much more sensible to locate an appropriate property for the duration of our stay in the shortest period possible, in order for us to allocate more time for the search of employment."

He simply grunts, while Jerry gapes at the girl in front of him.  
"the fuck?" At the expletive Rachel looks up at Jerry befuddled.

"I beg your pardon?" Her tone hints at the fact that she was not happy to be greeted with the f-bomb.

Puck jumps in before she can fry poor Jerry with her laser eyes.

"Rach, that's Jay. Jay, that's Rach" he points to each of them.

"How you doing?" Jay gives her a wide smile. Puck starts flexing his guns behind Rachel, just to make his point clear.

"I am very well, thank you very much. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance." She nods and Jay just looks confused.

"You always talk like some Dictionary or shit?" Puck starts chuckling.

"Told you, Berry, it ain't normal." She huffs and sits down next to him, shooting Jerry a glare. Ignoring him, she rifles through the paper until she finds the apartment-section and starts looking for something suitable to their limited financial resources.


	7. Chapter 7

_Chapter 7_

_It's a longer one again, told ya! Read and review, as always, people!_

It takes half a cheeseburger and all of his French fries (and a few of hers), until they've narrowed down the options to five, all within walking distance. Jay helps them by throwing in helpful advice about the neighborhood and what they should look out for. They set out walking, using the map Jay lent them.

The first apartment, it takes all of his persuasive skills to convince Berry that the landlord won't kill them and stash their bodies somewhere (he's not too sure about that either, the guy's a creep and runs a fucking _butcher shop_ a few houses down , but there is no way he'll let her find that out). They spend a total of 10 minutes in there, before even he can't stand the smell anymore, and he's a teenage boy who spends a lot of time in the locker room with a bunch of other sweaty guys.

The second one isn't much better. When the manager, if you could call it that, leads them up the stairs, Puck is kinda scared of crashing through to the basement. What really freaks him out though is the 50 something year old woman, dressed in a tight leather skirt who winks at him and licks her lips slowly, showing yellow-brown teeth. He instinctively moves closer to Rachel and uses her as a human shield. Rachel for her part just looks first confused, then amused. That is, until the landlord turns to her and starts offering rent deductions if she's willing to help him out with a thing or two. He doesn't even wait for clarification before throwing Rachel over his shoulder, pounding down the stairs and sprinting along the sidewalk like a madman. Rachel for her part has yet to realize what exactly just happened and is nothing but glad that she's wearing jeans.

The third and fourth ones end up being taken. So when they enter the fifth one, they are desperate enough to ignore nearly everything, the water stains on the ceiling, the weird and unpleasant smell in the staircase and the stains of indefinable color on one of the walls. Noah is chatting over the basics with the landlord and Rachel is checking out the bathroom, when it happens. He hears her screech and next thing he knows he's blind, because Rachel has latched herself onto his back like one of those leech-things from the discovery channel and is covering his eyes with her arms, which are wound around his head like a vice. Her tiny legs effectively bind his arms to his sides and he wonders how she managed to jump this high with hardly any space to gain speed. And oh yeah, did he mention that she's screeching like a fucking banshee right into his ear?

"A RAT! THERE WAS A RAT! NOAH!!! THERE IS NO WAY WE ARE LIVING HERE!!!"

He stumbles around for a few seconds, before he manages to pry his arms loose and pulls her hand from his eyes.

"Berry! Calm the fuck down!" The large, half-bald landlord looks at them confused.

"Noah! This place is infested with rodents! I refuse to share my living space with … with…with these creatures from hell!"

"Alright, alright! Sheesh, fine!" Puck turns to the landlord.

"Sorry, but it seems like we're not interested." Rachel flat-out refuses to let go, so he walks down the stairs carrying her piggy-back style on his back, all the while wondering what they're gonna do now.

What he didn't count on was Berry's persistent fear of rats. So persistent in fact, that she refused to let go of him until he walked through the doors of the Diner, two hours after they'd left.

Jay gave them a confused look, taking in Rachel's Monkey-act on his back.

"Found something?"

"Does it look like we did? First one was a dump, second one was like a fucking brothel, two others were taken, and with the fifth, Dumbo here freaked out when she saw a mouse." Rachel huffs and drops down from his back.

"First you tell me my height is substandard, now you compare me to one of the largest and heaviest mammals on this planet! Make up your mind, Noah! And it was a Rat! Do you know how much parasites that . . . that thing had on it?!? It could have been infested with the Plague, Noah! THE PLAGUE! We could have been responsible for the extinction of the entire New York City Population!" By this time Rachel is breathing hard and her eyes have gotten freakishly wide. Towards the end of her tirade, her voice has risen a few octaves and she is screeching again. He suddenly notices that it's gotten completely silent around them. The people in the Diner are all looking at her like she is crazy (rightfully so, he thinks, but hell if he says it out loud).

"She's kidding!" He shouts and forcefully steers her towards the far end of the bar.  
"Berry! Stop the crazy already! You'll get us killed at the rate you're going!" She scowls at him.

"Well, pardon me for at least caring about us surviving this summer!" She snaps back.

Before he can bite out a reply and point out the irony of the two statements (so what, they had a hot substitute for English for a few weeks!), Jay interrupts.

"You know, a friend of mine's lookin' for someone to rent his apartment. . . he's going back to Nebraska. The rent's alright" He gives Rachel a wary look. "I promise, no rats . . ."

"Where is it?"

"Not too far, couple of blocks, I can show you after I close up. Lemme just make a call."

After a few minutes it's settled and three hours later, after a hearty meal and some chats with Jay (who turns out to be a pretty cool guy), they make their way to their potential new apartment.

Jay leads them into a back-alley and up a few metal stairs, before knocking on the door. It's thrown open a few minutes later and a tall, lanky guy steps out and greets Jay with a handshake.

"Don, my man! I brought you some people for Jeff's place."

"Sup. I'm Don, the sorta-super for Jeff, till somebody moves in" He grins and shoots Rachel a quick wink. For the first time Noah starts to regret taking Rachel along. At least in Lima the guys didn't realize how fucking hot she is, here he's got a whole new demographic to deal with (shit, he's gotta stop using those words!).

"I'm Puck, this is Rachel." She gives him a wave.

Don lets them in and shows them around. It's small, two tiny rooms and a bath in which he isn't sure he fits in. It's not exactly the cleanest place, but it's eleven pm by now and Puck knows something better won't come along. As much as he loves his truck, he'd much rather sleep in a bed, somewhere. By now the excitement's wearing off and he feels like he could fall asleep standing up.

Before Rachel can go all freakazoid on poor Jay, who's watching her with all the happy anticipation of a goldfish looking at a closer coming cat, he says

"We'll take it." Don nods and Jay lets out a breath he didn't know he was holding. Instead of going on one of her rants, Rachel just gives him a tired nod and smile. Within the next hour they've signed the paperwork, gotten the key and driven the truck around. Jay says goodnight after exchanging contact info with Puck for later and it's finally just him and Rach, standing in the middle of _their _apartment.

Tomorrow, the enormity of their situation will hit them, but tonight, all Puck can do is drop his shoes, pants and shirt in front of the small single bed and fall into it. Rachel looks slightly uncertain for a few minutes, before Puck sleepily mumbles:

"Rach, I can hear you think. Get your tiny ass over here, I ain't letting you sleep on the floor, and I sure as hell won't do it either." Had it been any other day than this one, she would have held him a lecture about his vocabulary and the impropriety of the chosen course of action. But it's not, it's this day, when he has driven her 650 miles from home and taken her, as she will grudgingly admit, _challenging _personality. Granted, she has taken the fair share of his surliness, but she is sure he has a reason for his fairly erratic behavior. He will tell her at some point. Right now, she couldn't care less. So she takes off her shoes and changes into a baggy shirt and some boy-shorts she through into her tiny travel bag, before slowly crawling into bed beside him, trying to at least keep some distance between them. For a few minutes she lies there, uncomfortably tense and only a hair's breath away from the end of the matrace. Then he slings his arm over her waist and pulls her against his chest, nuzzling his nose against her neck.

"Go to sleep, Rach. Leave it till tomorrow." His warm scent engulfs her, he smells like cinnamon and apples and somehow it reminds her of Christmas. Her last thought before she falls asleep is how sad it is that Christmas only comes once in a year.

_Sorry, couldn't resist upping the Romance factor a bit, figured I gotta start at some point. Next up is job hunting, so any suggestions? I have some in mind, but any ideas are more than welcome!_


	8. Chapter 8

For the next week, they do the tourist-thing, visit Lady Liberty, the Empire State Building and the Museum of Natural History (Rachel's suggestions), as well as the Cheesecake-factory, the M&M's Shop and Planet Hollywood (his. (ok, M&Ms is kinda cheesy, but come on, they got M&Ms PJs!)).

Rachel laughs for about half an hour when he proudly displays his purchase that night and doesn't stop giggling until he points out the alternative would be sleeping in the nude, because he only has so many boxershorts. (She's not exactly entirely opposed to the concept. . . not that she'd ever tell him that. . .). They are still sharing a bed, because even though they might not be entirely broke yet, they can't afford buying a new bed or sleeping bags. That's at least the argument they give. (In secret, both are enjoying this new sleeping arrangement way too much).

Strangely enough it's never awkward. Rachel likes waking up in his arms, it makes her feel protected and, oddly, loved. Noah likes waking up with Rachel in his arms because it feels as though he can protect her . . . plus, he totally loves holding her hot body! So instead of being awkward, it's become weirdly enjoyable to both of them (sometimes a little too enjoyable for Noah, but so far he's been able to get to the Bathroom before she woke up every time).

In the morning they make pancakes, or eggs and bacon (they meaning him, because he discovered when he was 15 that being able to cook is sexy as hell . . . plus, he wanted to nail the teacher of the cooking class at the community college . . . he got out with his certificate and a lot of interesting ways to use maple sirup).

Afterwards, they stroll around the city, just enjoying being somewhere where no one has any idea who they are or what they have done. Noah doesn't get glared at wherever he goes (he still gets some suggestive smiles and winks, which he relishes in), and Rachel doesn't get looked at like she is some kind of freak show (for the first time in her life she can just be, which is oddly liberating).

They both are aware that there is a lot to talk about. Noah still hasn't told her why he left all of a sudden, why he begged her to come with him or that he's seriously considering just staying in New York. Rachel still hasn't told him why she came with him and that she's sorry for her role in that whole Quinn-Finn-Baby-debacle.

Noah largely tries to not think about the stuff that's back home, the whole deal with Quinn, Finn (honestly, he never noticed before, but even thinking their names together is sorta ridiculous. . .) and his Dad. He checked his phone the first morning he woke up, but neither his mum nor Finn had called. Only thing he got were a bunch of messages from Quinn, the first ten whiny, the next bitchy, and when he realizes he's reached message number 50, it just becomes plain creepy. He's not sure whether he's happy or sad about the fact that his mum and his former best friend haven't even bothered to call him.

Noah knows he owes Rachel the truth, but at the same time he's scared shitless that if he tells Rachel everything, she's gonna realize she's in one of the biggest cities on the planet with a quintessential (it's been a week and he's starting to sound like her!) screw-up and gonna get the hell outta dodge.

Nonetheless, he can't help but marvel at the change that has come about her. Without someone else making snide comments at her and constantly insulting her, she's mellowed out. Her crazy is still there, don't get him wrong, once, he woke up to see her doing yoga at 3 am, because she couldn't sleep (fastest Bathroom-sprint yet). And half the time neither him nor Jay have any friggin' idea what she's saying. But it seems like her crazy's been wrapped in Cotton Candy or some shit, because he finds himself actually having nice chats with her. Turns out, Berry knows just as much about Classic Rock and football as himself ("My dad was in a moderately successful Rockband in his youth, while my Daddy played football during College"). Plus, sometimes she goes all Yoda on his ass and makes those weirdly profound statements, which leave him all confused, but kinda fuzzy inside.

One of those times they are chilling in Central Park after hot dogs (she one, he three) and are just lying there, watching some dudes play Frisbee and some kids on a playground. His chest aches when he thinks that a few weeks ago, he could have had that, with his kid. His throat clogs up and he coughs a bit to dislodge the boulder stuck there. Rachel just places her hand on his chest (she's got her head in his lap while he leans against a tree) and says calmly:

"Life's a bit like an old house. Sometimes the roof caves in, or a pipe bursts, and you lose something important. But in the end, when all is said and done, you have the chance to rebuild things and make them stronger, and better than before and even finally find the motivation to do something you wanted for a long time, and in the long run, it is better to have started new than clinging to a plethora of different mementos." She doesn't look at him while she speaks, and the accuracy of her statement hits him hard when he thinks about Quinn. He's not quite sure how she got so darn good with feelings and shit, seeing as she still has no clue what exactly went down between him and his Baby-Momma, but right now he doesn't care.

"You going all Tim Taylor on me Berry?" He gives her a soft smile to let her know he understands her.

She smirks at him.  
"It might help with your atrocious handy-man skills, if I recall when I asked you to fix the door knob last week, we ended up without a door for three days. And if it were not for Jay's help, we would still be at high risk of being murdered in our sleep." There is no way he forgets that incident, she actually made him sleep right behind the door so he would scare off any intruders (he didn't bother pointing out that that would only mean he'd be the first to die and then not able to protect her).

He grumbles good-naturedly, but continues to softly run his hand through her hair and leans his head back. Rachel might not be wrinkly, and green and . . .well yes, she's fucking tiny, but she's the Yoda to his Han Solo (there is just no way he's that dopey Luke Skywalker kid!).

It's two weeks into their stay when Rachel announces that they'll probably be broke by the end of the month, because apparently he eats enough to starve off world hunger. After two weeks, he's come to realize the best way to win an argument against Rachel is to simply not have it, so he just nods and says they'll best be looking for work then.

When they tell Jay of their plan (he's taken them under his wing, claiming if left alone they'd be dead in the gutter in a week, which Noah thinks could be scarily true), he looks Noah up and down and nods.  
"You guys got IDs?" he asks. Problem is, they're both 17, going on 18 and waaay too many questions will be asked if that comes out. With a feral grin, Jay says he'll be over tonight and they best prepare some names.

With a thankful smile they walk down to the next store and buy stuff for a nice dinner for three (he buys, because while he can cook, Rachel is a walking menace in the kitchen, he found out the hard way when she managed to explode eggs she was trying to cook).

When they get back to the hole, as they have taken to call their little place fondly, the discussion starts. After an hour of discussion, Rachel convinces him that they should just write down their five best suggestions on a list and try to sort it out.

When he's done with his, he can't help but smile proudly:

"Ok Berry, here we go. I got:

Hugh Smeehaard"

"No"  
"Come on!"

"Noah, no!"

"But . . .it's dutch?" He gives her his puppy dog eyes.

"Noah! I refuse to live in an apartment, with someone who's name is phonetically identical to such vile language! And don't even try to say you were not aware of this, in fact I believe that is one of the reasons you chose this name!" He has the decency to only let a guilty smirk come out.

"Next"

"Jack Package?"  
"You honestly think I am not well-versed in popculture? The man was on Broadway, too, Noah!"

He's surprised she got that one.

"Dick Long?" She simply huffs and glares at him. "William Ulysses Bang?" He grins hopefully, but she just looks at him. "Noah, you will get official letters using that name . . . I will have to collect the mail at one point or other!"Her glare intensifies. He sighs. Truth be told, he only put the first four on there to annoy her. Rachel all riled up is pretty sexy to him.

"How about . . . Johnathan Collins?" He frowns.

"Berry, the man in black I get, but there is no way in hell I go out here looking for work with a name that's known for a fucking Disney Song!" She lifts her hands in defense.

"How about Simmons?"

"Hmmm. . ." he ponders it for a moment.

"sounds good! Now yours."

Rachel sits a little straighter.

"What about Barb – "

"No."  
"But . . ."

"No, Berry just no. This Summer is about new pipes n shit, right?" For a second she looks at him like he's grown a second head, before she remembers their conversation.

"I guess . . . but she's a Jewish Icon!"

"It ain't about that! It's about letting go!"

She huffs a little, but when she tilts her head to the left and scrunches up her nose, he knows he's convinced her.

"Joanne - - -?"

"You made me watch that movie TEN TIMES in one week. . ." _Ha! If you can kill mine, I can kill yours!_ He thinks smugly.

"Celine – "

"No."

"But you haven't even heard the last name!"

"Do I care? Berry, I gotta call you by something right? And I am not gonna call you some lame-ass French name of some lady wailing about ships!"

She frowns at that.

"Noah, you would be very wise to acknowledge the immense diversity of her repertoire!"  
"Not happening Berry! She's friggin' Canadian!"

That one throws her for a loop.

"You vetoed my name for a fake identity I have to have for a limited duration, based on the geographical location of the town of origin of a world-famous singer who happens to share the same name?" She asks incredulously, wondering what on earth is going on in his head.

"It's got nothing to do with maps, she's from Canada!" he harrumphs and crosses his arms, as if to make his point. Rachel for her part just throws her hands in the air.

"I give up! You make something up!" For a second he's tempted to suggest names of porn stars he knows she doesn't know, but takes pity on her.

"How about . . . Caroline?" He suggests, smiling down at her. "Caroline June?"

She smiles happily.  
"I like it. Caroline June Pascall?" He rolls his eyes but pulls her in a hug regardless. Berry without Broadway just doesn't work.

"Sounds good to me" he says as her arms wrap around his waist. He is struck again by just how tiny and fragile she is, and he feels the constant nagging guilt of what he did to her for the past two years. He knows they have to have a proper conversation sooner or later.

"Jonathan Simmons and Caroline June Pascall." She looks up at him from his chest.

"Not quite. Caroline June Pascall and Jonathan Neil Simmons. We're two hot jews, after all" he winks at her.


	9. Chapter 9

_Chapter Nine! This is it, so far the best chapter, if I may say so myself =) _

_Read and review, as always!  
Disclaimer: The characters aren't mine, neither is the song, it belongs to the incredible Idina Menzel and is entitled Damsel in Distress! Go out and buy it, I have become obsessed with it in the last few days ;)_

Chapter 9

When Jay finally hands them their new IDs a few days later, they immediately start looking for jobs. They've managed to live off of their savings for three weeks, but food, rent, gas and now the fake IDs have taken a sizable chunk out of their cushion.

For Noah, it's pure coincidence when he finds one. They stroll into a jazz – bar one night, after a few days of fruitless searches, when they witness one of the bar tenders quitting right on the spot. It's pretty busy for the smoky little club they are in, and the one lone bartender left is a fresh-faced college kid with two left hands. They wait for their drinks for a while until the first few patrons start to leave, grumbling about bad service and the poor kid, who is probably older than the two of them, looks like he might cry any second. Noah is oddly reminded of Finn.

"Wait here, Rach." He says, before taking three strides and hopping across the bar with ease. For a second the kid looks scared and confused, until Noah starts handing out beers and rum and cokes and gin tonics left and right. With a grateful nod, the kid (his name's Chris, as turns out later) turns back to pouring whisky – shots. Rachel just grabs the coke he hands her and sits down on a stool at the end of the bar and watches the phenomenon that is Noah Puckerman.

She has always been aware of his ability to get people (especially the female ones) to like him. Sure, he can be incredibly uncouth, but somehow, people have always been drawn to him. Right now he handles everything with an ease which she envies. People talk to him, shout orders, make bad jokes, good jokes and try to flirt with him. Noah simply pours drinks, answers with jokes of his own and flirts back (she refuses to be jealous).

In between he gives her grins, winks and lascivious smirks, to which she smiles, blushes or frowns slighty. Sometime around 12 she nods off, in her little secluded booth. When Noah softly calls her name and gently shakes her awake at around two, she is completely drowsy.

"Come on, Rach, wake up."

She grunts and blinks slowly. With a slight wobble she gets up and he wraps an arm around her shoulders, leading her outside. When she shivers, Noah takes off his jacket and wraps it around her.

They walk in silence for a while, her still tucked underneath his arm and into his side.

They stroll home with peaceful silence between them, surrounded by the sounds and noise of New York City.

The next morning she is woken by him shouting her name, grabbing her and swirling her around like crazy. Before she can fully comprehend what's going on, he kisses her forcefully on the mouth before hugging her tightly to his chest. Rachel's tenuous grasp on reality, just barely there after being awoken so rudely, is shattered into a billion pieces. Before she can even start thinking about the possible implications, he pulls back and beams down at her. His eyes are dancing around and his face is aglow.

"I GOT IT!" he shouts. On top of being half-asleep, dazed because of a kiss, she is now deaf and confused as hell.

So her usual eloquence fails her.

"Huh?"

"I got it! Chris called me today, they loved me, I mean, they want me to cover the bar again tonight!"

"What?"

"I got it! Rachel, they want me to be a barkeeper! You know what that means? We got some money to blow! Come on, I'm treatin' ya to the Diner!" Unceremoniously he grabs her jeans and shirt from the chair, throws them at her and shoves her towards the bathroom.

"Uuuuh. . ."

"Come on, Rach! I'm hungry! We have to celebrate!" He is practically buzzing with energy.

"But Noah . .." Before she can say anymore, he pushes her towards the bathroom again.

"Come on!"

"Noah . . ."  
"Rachel – "  
"STOP!"

After she bellows at the top of her lungs, he stands there slightly dumbfounded.

"Noah, I am more than happy for you! And yes, I agree, the Diner sounds lovely, but would you mind if I actually grabbed my bra or are you planning on dressing me as well?" He has the decency to blush (which she does NOT find endearing . . . at all. . . ).

With a sheepish smile he shrugs his shoulders and turns around.  
"Alright, sorry, but don't take your time, I'm starving here!" She rolls her eyes, but hurries up regardless. 15 minutes later, Noah is still recounting the time behind the bar, every drink he mixed, every time he tossed bottles, every time he did pretty much anything. Jay for his part is listening with an amused smile on his face. Rachel stopped listening after the third time he repeats the exact amount of alcohol poured into each drink. Their roles have become strangely reversed. Noah is bouncing around like Speedy Gonzales on helium, whereas Rachel has reduced her input to `hmming` from time to time and sipping her coffee.

When they leave the Diner two hours later with a promise from Jay to come over to the club sometime at night, he randomly grabs her and twirls her around. They both start laughing, and when he puts her down again he brushes a chaste kiss to her lips before pulling her closer.

"Thanks, Rach. Thanks."

So, Puck starts to tend bar at the Razzmatazz, a small Jazzclub and bar a few blocks from where they live and his having a blast. Chris is more like Finn than he thought possible, and while it also pushes the whole Drama at home to the forefront, he can't help but notice how much he misses the big goofy dude.

Rachel starts looking for job for herself. Within a week, she tries a bunch of things. The first is a gig as a barista at a Starbucks. It's a catastrophe. Turns out, pointing out healthier options to your customers and embarking on lectures about the impact of too much dairy on your vocal cords is not only appreciated. Plus, her boss totally thought she'd swiped about half a pot of coffee during her two hours of try-out work . . . no one can be that hyper all the time. (Puck laughs for ages when he hears that).

Rachel also tries out selling records at a small shop down town. She's actually not half bad . . . for about an hour or so she can impress people with her detailed knowledge about musical theory. It's when she suggests the soundtrack of West Side Story to a bunch of Grunge metal-fans that things get ugly. Turns out, the leader's girlfriend is Hispanic (and weirdly enough, the dude knows enough about the story to somehow get offended by her suggestion). Puck quickly steps in and with a flexing of his guns and a few calming words diffuses the situation. Sadly, the manager is still a bit wary of Rachel's attempts to sell Broadway to anyone who enters.

She tries working at the supermarket, but he doesn't like the way the pimply teenaged manager is leering at her. She's fired because he accidentally throws veggies at the nerd's head, after he overhears him mentioning Rachel and the breakroom. ("Why would you throw produce at my supervisor?!?!?" –I was aiming for Jay, he was gonna catch it and put it in the basket! – You have excellent aim, Noah! You are the Pitcher for the school's baseball team! – well, yeah but . . . I hate Zucchini!" (When she finds out why he did it during one of the nights on the roof with Jay and their soon-to-be friends, she kisses his cheek and calls him sweet, but right now, throwing groceries just ticks her off)).

The break comes, oddly enough, during one of the nights Noah's tending the bar. He's a natural at both mixing drinks and getting people to drink, so he's in his element. Rachel, Jay, Don and Jay's flavor of the week, plus Don's sister Karen are sitting in a booth, chatting calmly. From time to time he shoots a smile at Rachel and she blushes at being caught staring. The dark vest over the white dress-shirt with the rolled up sleeves makes him look incredibly sexy. Add to that his bulking muscles, it is no wonder why Noah receives more tips and female patrons than any other barkeeper.

Every Wednesday there is karaoke-night, both Jazz and pretty much everything else is a go. That Wednesday, Rachel is not drunk, but definitely daring after a few rum-cokes. When she mentions accidentally that both Noah and her are in Glee Club, Jay, Don and Karen force her to go up to the stage and sing, just to prove she can.

When the first few chords of the song fill the air, Puck nearly drops the glasses he's polishing. The riffs are pure sex and go straight to his core. He can feel every single male pair of eyes slide over to the brunette bombshell that's Rachel in jeans and a black tank top (turns out she wore those sweater assemblies because she KNEW she was gonna get slushied, what's the point of looking good when you end up doused in pink corn sirup anyways?). Rachel tosses her hair a little bit and Puck pities every poor fuck who will never see Rachel Berry perform.

With a grin she pushes a hand through her tousled hair and turns on the bedroom eyes. With a sensual sway of her hips she opens her mouth and sings in a deep throaty voice that has Puck nearly pulling a Finn from across the room.

"_Ooh, you got big muscles rippling  
Underneath your shirt"_

She shoots him an easy wink.

"_I'm so glad to meet you, baby  
Tell me, what do you do for work?  
Me? I'm just a housewife  
So sad and all alone  
Desperate for a strong man  
To help me fix my home"_

Swaying her hips from side to side she steps into the audience, which by now is panting and starts advancing on some guy in the front. She strokes a finger down his nose and pats his cheek, before winking at him and sauntering off again.

_  
"I know I must look a sight  
In this--this flimsy little dress  
Won't you try your very best  
To save a damsel in distress?"_

The next guy gets his hair tousled and actually looks after her with his tongue nearly hanging out. She still advances towards Puck, who is trying very hard not to jump the counter and take her right there in the middle of the bar with everyone watching.__

I've got tasty treats to tempt you  
Come and sit down on my couch  
I'm sure it won't take long  
To figure all my problems out  
My home, it needs attention  
It's such a big old mess  
Take out your trusty tool  
And save this damsel in distress!

Rachel is in the middle of the bar now, all eyes on her. She saunters from guy to guy, never quite close enough to catch, but with a hair toss here and there, winks and blown kisses, they are all putty in her hands. With a feral grin she stalks towards Jay as she sings the next part. Rachel positions herself in his lap and calmly strokes her hand down his chest, winks at him and tousles his hair. Puck doesn't even hear the crunch of the glass in his hand as he involuntarily tenses. __

"Now, you need no invitation, baby  
Just walk in and shut the door  
Follow the red rose petals that I've left  
Scattered on the floor  
I'll be upstairs waiting  
With a wisp of honeydew  
Customize and tell a maid  
For a handed man like you"

She leaves Jay in a daze and blows Don and Karen a kiss as she struts back to the stage. Rachel can feel Noah's gaze burning a hole into the back of her head. With a sexy smirk she throws a look over her shoulder at him.

_  
"You know, I'd be so grateful  
If you'd come relieve my stress  
Won't you heed my S.O.S.  
And save a damsel in distress?"_

Oh, yeah!  
Oh! Yea-ay

So sweet  
I got the need if you're willing to please  
Trust me  
I make it so good that you won't wanna leave  


Back on stage, she is moving sensually. Puck for his part is very close to punching all the guys in the bar for the way they look at her. His gaze clearly brands her as his. And Rachel is enjoying every minute of it. With the last chorus, she gives it her everything. Looking him right into the eye and returning his smoldering looks with a challenging one of her own, she sings directly at him.

_  
"I got tasty treats to tempt you  
Come and sit down on my couch  
I'm sure it won't take long  
To figure all my problems out  
My home, it needs attention  
It's such a big old mess  
Take out your trusty tool  
And save this damsel in distress_

Now what's a girl to do?  
I'm just a--a damsel in--in distress, yeah  
Oh-- little old me, baby  
What you want for dinner, baby?!  
Oh! Yeah!"

The bar is collectively on their feet after a few seconds of stunned silence. She grins and mutters a thank you into the microphone, but her eyes never leave his. When she steps off the stage and towards the others, he jerks his head towards the backdoor and motions to Chris that he'll step out for a minute. Somehow, he doesn't think there'll be a lot to do, the line for the men's bathroom is suspiciously long, so they'll be preoccupied. Chris for his part just nods goofily, not quite aware of why Noah wants to leave now, or why there is a shattered glass in Noah's hands.

Two seconds later he is breathing in the stench of a backalley of New York, waiting for Rachel to show. He knows he wanted to wait until he could be the emotional, honest and nice boyfriend that Rachel deserves. But fuck this, he's a teenage boy, and he's wanted her pretty much since the first time he made out with her in her Bubble-gum pink bedroom. And she totally wanted him, too, he hopes. Plus, she's fucking hot, as the raging hard-on, well hidden by the apron he has to wear, shows. If she can do that with her singing and dancing alone, he doesn't want to imagine what she'll do in person.

He hears the door behind him open and sees Rachel step out. She looks around for a second before spotting him. A mischievous smirk crosses her face and she raises a suggestive eyebrow.

"What can I do for you, Noah?" Her formal speech, his given name on her tongue, and the fact that she fucking knows what she just did to him rip the small sliver of self-control he had left to shreds.

Before he can chicken out, he advances and backs her into the wall, a predatory gleam in his eye. He searches her face for any kind of indication that she's uncomfortable or doesn't want this, but all he sees is arousal and something deeper, that he knows is also reflected in his eyes.

"You little minx!" he growls, before capturing her lips in a searing kiss. It's not sweet and stumbling and awkward, like Finn's kisses, and not as forceful and demanding as when they made out during their week together last year.

This kiss is raw, powerful and emotional, it burns her lips and her soul. Rachel sees fireworks, something she thought was nothing but a clichè. But underneath that raw, primal power that embodies Puck, is a gentleness and a tenderness that is pure Noah.

His lips are soft against her own, and while his tongue is certainly used with skill, it isn't as pushy as last time. Of course, all these thoughts only enter Rachel's mind a few hours later, when she tries to sleep. Right now, she can't actually think, Noah Puckerman has kissed her speechless.

He buries one hand in her hair and pulls her closer to his body with his other arm. With ease he lifts her, and Rachel snakes her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck. She doesn't know how long they make out like this, she just knows that this, right here, this is _real_!

She can feel the rough brick wall pressing into her back and his warm, calloused hands as they stroke down her arms and neck. His lips are warm and soft and she feels the powerful muscles of his chest and shoulders as they hold her in place. His back ripples under her hand, as his arms push up her shirt and he trails his hands down her back and over her flat stomach.

Her hands caress his head. When she scrapes her fingernails lightly across his skull, he responds with a deep-throated moan. When she starts trailing his neck with kisses, he shudders and she feels his heart racing as she nips his pulse point, causing his knees to buckle slightly.

After a few more enjoyable minutes, he slows his kisses down to a soft massage of her lips with his, until he finally rests his forehead against hers. They are both breathing heavily and their eyes are closed. She can still feel his heartbeat racing, just as fast as hers. He can feel her chest heaving with every labored breath she takes.

When he finally opens his eyes, he sees her staring right back at him. The look on her face is nearly his undoing, her lips are swollen and slightly red, there is a hickey on her neck and her face is flushed. A few strands of hair are hanging in her face and he softly brushes them away with one hand. Her eyes lock with his, and he can't help but press a quick peck to her lips.

"God, Rach." He buries his head in her neck. "God, I want you. . ." Noah hears her throaty chuckle in his ear. "Trust me, the feeling's mutual." She presses a kiss to his ear.

He heaves a sigh, and steps back, allowing her to drop her legs from around his waist. He doesn't let her go though, keeping her encircled with his arms.

When he finally looks up at her, the raw vulnerability in his eyes nearly brings her to tears. He takes a deep breath and just decides to be honest:

"Shit, Rach, I want you. Like, bad! And I like you, like, like like you . . .a lot! But, we probably gotta talk n shit first. You don't know how fucked up I am, and you deserve to go into this thing with both eyes open. And I won't let your first time be in some back alley next to some fucking trash cans, because you deserve better, you deserve the best baby!" he has to stop before he goes on, because what he says next goes against everything he's always wanted people to think: " And I know I ain't the best and you got people like Finn and shit and you can probably find at least a million other guys who are a million times better than me and who deserve being with you a hundred times more than I do. I mean, I'm screwed up and shit, and I'm a jerk half the time and a total ass the rest, and I get it that you don't want a relationship or anything with me, because I pretty much ruined your life and I don't wanna, like, pressure you into something, but if you could at least give us a chance to talk, I'd be . . .grateful . . ." he trails off as he notices that he's been kinda rambling for the last five minutes.

Noah looks at her and sees a shocked expression on her face and he feels his face fall. What the fuck, Puckerman? Way to screw it up! The one good thing in your life and you've managed to fuck that up as well! His mind screams at him. Rachel opens her mouth, but doesn't say anything, her expression still one of disbelief. With her apparent rejection, Noah's feelings plummet. Funny, he thinks, right before this shit, I felt like my organs were all twisted n shit. Now, he feels kinda empty.

He looks to the floor and shuffles a little backwards.

"Well. . . I'm sorry . . . I. . . yeah" Noah clears his throat and steps back.

"Don't worry, I get it. Why would someone like you wanna be with someone like me." He chuckles bitterly. "Look, this doesn't have to be awkward, I'll sleep at the bar tonight and grab my stuff from the apartment tomo - - -" he doesn't get any further, because with two steps Rachel as walked around him and presses her lips to his in a sweet, but powerful kiss.

"Shut up, you big lug!" She says. There are tears in her eyes, which sends Noah into panic-mode. He can deal with screaming girls, girls who laugh at him, but tears? Not good.

"Look, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you cry, I - - -" she kisses him again, and briefly deepens it, before pulling away, but staying in his arms.

"Happy tears, Noah! Happy tears! That was by far the sweetest, and somehow simultaneously the most offensive thing anyone has ever said to me" She pecks him on the lips, and he finally gets what she's trying to say. Rachel is grinning like a maniac but so is he, so that's kinda cool. And shit, no way is he crying now, too.

"I want that conversation Noah. I want that conversation, and a whole lot more." His response is to grab her and squeeze her so tight, she's afraid she might break. But somehow, she doesn't care, because she does the same with him. When he finally let's go of her, he peppers her face with kisses, muttering "Thank you!" incessantly. He leans his forehead against hers and they simply enjoy being with each other. Until Gary, the owner, throws the backdoor open and calls out for Noah to move his ass back to the bar.

He presses a last kiss to her lips, and whispers:

"Tomorrow!" into her ear, before pulling her back towards the entrance.

Once inside, he rejoins an oblivious and helplessly overwhelmed Chris at the bar, while Gary pulls Rachel towards his office. The rest of the night, he is unaware of any flirting attempts and grins like a fool the whole time. He mixes up orders and has to re-do quite a few drinks, it reaches a point where even Chris looks at him confused. But three hours later, when he is standing in front of the Razzmatazz neon-sign waiting for his girl (it still seems premature to add the friend), his grin is still in place and the world feels like it's finally spinning in the right direction. And then Rachel comes barreling out of the door and jumps into his arms, screaming about how Gary just hired her as the in-house live-vocalist for four nights per week. Scratch spinning. It's pretty much racing towards wherever he wants to go.

_I finally did it . . . they are together, sorta, and it has only taken me 10 chapters and 10 000+ words. . . gotta admit, this was by far the best chapter to write yet!_

_Next up, the dreaded talk and my attempts at writing humorous Puckleberry-goodness ^^ and does anybody else think that puckelberry sounds like a new Ben & Jerry's Ice cream???_


	10. Chapter 10

When Rachel wakes up in the morning, she stretches and feels the comforting heaviness of his arm around her waist. When she turns around, she finds Noah smiling down at her with warm eyes.

He brushes a soft kiss across her lips and tightens his hold.

"Hey you." He whispers.

She's about to reply, when she realizes his breath smells like their toothpaste and hers probably, well. . .doesn't. Rachel wiggles out of his grasp and shoots into their tiny bathroom. She brushes her teeth as fast as possible and walks back out. Noah is still lying in bed on his back, his arms crossed behind his head. She can't help but marvel at his sculpted upper body and the look of pure content on his face, complete with a happy smirk. Rachel slowly walks back to the bed and shuffles in next to him, reaching up to pull his neck down and kiss him fully. This time his kiss is not as scorching as last night, they still make her toes curl, but it is the pure adoration and happiness she feels as he tenderly brushes his lips across hers again and again.

"Hey . . ." she finally says, her smile a mile wide.

That is pretty much how they spend their morning, simply enjoying being together, occasionally kissing and whispering sweet nothings to each other. It is simple, easy, being with him she finds. So much simpler than when she was hung up on Finn. Looking back she marvels at how a few months have changed her.

In the beginning of last school year, she was convinced she was fated to have one of those tragic love stories with the sweet quarterback, consisting of stolen kisses and forever kept apart by society, damned to hidden glances and moments away from prying eyes. Then she met Puck, and he was everything she knew he would be. Mean, egoistic, foul-mouthed, uncouth and just plain rude. Their first relationship, if you could call it that, was doomed to fail before it even started. And it did. But even though Rachel broke it off, she always felt like there was something she was missing.

Then of course, the baby-drama happened. She is still sorry for the pain she caused, not because she told Finn the truth, it was the right thing to do. But she hurt Finn, nonetheless, and she hurt Noah, not Puck, but Noah. In the aftermath, Rachel likes to think they all grew up and learned something about themselves and each other. She learned that yes, Quinn had made a mistake, but she was just a frightened girl, thrust into a situation in which making the wrong choice was too tempting for a 16 year old girl. She realized that Finn, despite all his sweetness and adorable character, was nothing but a high-school student. He still led her on, he still used her, and when the only thing that was keeping them from being with each other was peer pressure, a pressure his behavior as Quarterback could easily direct towards another target, and he still did not make a move out of fear, he might just be not worth all the heartache she had endured.

And she found what she had been missing in her relationship with Puck. Noah. While all others rallied around Finn, the hero who had been betrayed, and Quinn, the perfect girl who had been led astray and seduced by the villain, she couldn't help but look at the supposed bad guy. Yes, he had made a mistake, but he had tried to make up for it. He did his best to take responsibility, he tried his hardest to do the right thing, but in the end, everyone expected him to fail, so he did. Rachel had stuck by him, stuck up for him at times. She had heard him cry in empty class rooms, seen him in anguish when he thought no one was looking. This was the Noah she had come to like, and, dare she say, even love.

And Rachel also realized something else. High school was just that . . . High school. It hit her with a startling clarity one afternoon, while she tried her hardest not to cry about the mean comments Mercedes and Kurt had said about her, unaware of her proximity. This was just one part of the journey, a part which would end in less than a year. She would leave Lima behind for college, she would meet new people and she would probably finally make friends. Rachel knew that the Glee Clubbers were the only people who liked her, well, not all of them. Santana, Quinn, Mercedes and Kurt still made her life living hell. But Artie and Tina seemed to like her, Artie and her had bonded over Rachel's Bass-playing skills and she had always liked Tina's . . . unique . . . style. Matt and Mike had warmed up to her, especially after she told Finn the truth. They both thought what Puck had done was screwed up, but Quinn had done just as much. And telling Finn the truth had to be done.

Brittany was nice enough, away from Quinn and Santana. They drove home together from time to time, as it turns out they lived in the same street. The blonde was quirky and not the brightest bulb around, but her unwavering optimism had always brightened Rachel's at best murky days.

And of course, now she had Noah, who pretty much turned on the halogen-spotlights in her life.

A rustle of fabric behind her broke her from her musings and the object of her affections nuzzled her neck softly.

"I can hear you think, Rach…"his voice was gravelly from sleep and rumbled deeply through his chest. It was quite possibly the sexiest thing she had ever heard. She pressed a kiss to the highest part he could reach, which happened to be the underside of his chin. A look at her phone on the nightstand made her wiggle out of his grip and stretch.

"Noah! It's almost 2 in the afternoon!" She panicked, and was already grabbing all her stuff, stumbling towards the bathroom.

Noah for his part had been just about to kiss his way down her neck when she had moved away, leaving him to make out with the matrace.

"Rachel??? The fuck???" She stops in the doorway, her arms full with her clothes and a towel.

"Noah! Come on, we need to . . ." That's when it hits her. There is literally nothing stopping her from spending the entire day in bed with him. Except . . . yeah, except that they still haven't quite figured out what they are. Yes, she wants him (oh _so much_!). And she is fairly confident that he wants her (_reaaally _confident). But from what little experience she has had with boys, Rachel is hesitant to jump into something head on without having all the facts.

Noah just chuckles and scrubs a hand down his face. He knows the moment when she realizes that there is nothing stopping them, and he also sees the struggle in her face. He knows if he asks, she'll be with him in a second. But he promised himself last night to be less Puck and more Noah.

So he regretfully pushes himself up.

"Feel like Pancakes?" He asks and she gives him a grateful smile, before nodding and slipping into the bathroom to get changed.

An hour later they sit outside on the roof and are having brunch in silence. Noah is kinda freaking out at this point, because Rachel is hardly ever silent. As scary as she is when she shouts, or screams or just talks reaaally fast, its when she's silent that you better run. So he digs into his pancakes and washes them down with a huge gulp of orange juice, nearly killing himself in the process. When he is done, he puts his plate down and looks at her. She has barely touched her food.

"So, I guess we gotta talk. . ." She looks about as uncomfortable as him, which he figures makes the next part a bit easier. Noah grabs her hand.

"Look, Rach. I gotta tell you some stuff, and if you wanna ditch me afterwards, that's fine, too. But ... well, just lemme get this through before you kick my ass to the curb, alright?" He doesn't look up, but the light squeeze of his hand tells him she'll stick around, at least for this. He takes a deep breath.

"I figure I owe you at least a reason why I dragged you to New York with me." He feels she's about to interrupt and gives her a small smile to let her know he doesn't mean it like that.

"Quinn's kid . . .it ain't mine. . ." He hears her draw a sharp breath and the pressure on his hand increases. He feels the numbness creeping back into his soul, and focuses everything on her tiny hand in his.

"I mean . . .shit, I fought for her…like, I didn't give a shit about Quinn, but that little girl was mine, you know. I loved her. . .but how can you fucking love something . . .I mean, I should be feeling relieved and shit. . . but. . .how can you love something so much when it's not even yours? When it don't even exist" he's looking off into the city.

Rachel just shifts closer to him, knowing he doesn't want her to answer him just yet. Noah winds an arm around her and drags her between his legs, her back to his front.

"And man, I get now what Finn felt like. . . I mean. . . shit, it felt like she was dead or something. . .I loved that little girl. . ." Rachel can feel the moisture of his tears splashing on her head and his sobs wrack her body. She turns around and simply pulls him close to her, letting him rest his head on her shoulder and allows him to simply let go.

And Noah feels the numbness receding with every tear he sheds for his little girl, who was never his but who he loved nonetheless. All his anguish comes flowing out of him and he starts to feel lighter. Before he can even try to stop himself, everything comes pouring forth.

He tells her about his Dad, about his fucked up childhood, how Glee was pretty much the only thing keeping him going, how he doesn't know if he can come back from that. That afternoon he cries more than in his entire misspent youth and tells her more about himself than he has ever told anyone before, more than he knew about himself.

Rachel just holds him, keeping her mouth shut the entire time. Only after he has stopped crying and his breathing is evening out does she say anything.

"Suspenders." Noah for his part, feels like a polarbear in a washing salon.

"Huh?" Rachel looks up at him and smiles impishly.

"Suspenders. That's why I accompanied you." She clarifies, sorta.

"Berry. . .you know that whole making sense thing? You totally blew it." He looks down at her worriedly. Suspenders don't seem like a very good reason to go to a strange city with a guy like him, much less one to stick around.

She sees his worried look and leans up to press a short but poignant kiss to his mouth, before resuming her cuddling position half on top of him.

"I was watching Larry King, when I fell asleep and saw myself in the future, being interviewed by him. He asked me about my greatest adventure. . .and I was unable to answer him. So, I realized, I had never truly been out of Lima. And my entire life has always revolved around becoming a Star and working towards a goal. . . that I forgot to actually have a life." He knows it might sound ridiculous, but he can hear the deep sadness and loneliness underneath it.

"I mean, I have hardly any friends, except maybe you, Artie and Tina, nobody outside of Glee. I used to get slushied every day, people make fun of me, not even behind my back but actually in front of me. I humiliated myself by crushing first on the school's quarterback who is as intelligent as deep-frozen pizza and a teacher, and not exactly being subtle about it." Noah feels the need to interrupt her.

"I'm sorry, by the way. For the slushies and shit. That stuff was fucked up. . ." he trails off, unsure if it was a good decision to remind her of his role in her social status.

"It's alright. It's not forgotten, but forgiven nonetheless." She kisses his jaw and he tightens his grip.

"But you know what I have come to realize, following the last few months? All of that is of very little significance. In one more year we will depart for College, we will leave Lima, and I will attend a College in New York and you will be wherever you want to be, New York or San Francisco or Washington or Dallas! And it does not matter whether or not some pea-brained imbeciles felt the need to belittle me constantly for four years, or whether they held preconceived notions of you as a non-achiever, because why should it matter to us what these fools think? Half of them have neither the drive nor the talent to achieve something outside of Lima! Who are they to judge?!?!" She has talked herself into a rage, and while Noah is not entirely sure what preconceived means, he got that gist of it is fairly easy to understand – fuck them!

Then he realizes, Rachel actually believed he could attend an out – of - state College, and the thought that someone as driven, as talented and as bound to succeed as Rachel is convinced that he can make something of himself, makes him happier than he ever thought he could be.

Before she can continue to rant, he pulls her up until her face is level with his and raises his head to give her a sweet, loving kiss. Usually he would swoop in and have the girl creaming her pants within a few seconds, begging him for more. But with Rach, it's different. He knows that, he's always known that. She's changed him, and fuck him, he's actually grown up.

He wraps his arms around her and pulls them both into a sitting position. With a bit of shuffling, she is sitting between his legs again, the position in which this entire thing began. He feels oddly light, as though he could leap off the building and start flying. The weight that has been pressing on his chest ever since he found out the truth about his daughter and since he saw his Dad sitting in his living room, has lifted.

Together they watch how the sun slowly sets around them and dips New York into a plethora of different colors. He drops kisses on her head every now and then, and she draws random patterns on his forearms.

When the last of the light is gone, she turns her head towards his and pulls him into a deep kiss. Afterwards he locks his piercing green eyes with hers and sees the happiness and adoration he feels reflected in their dark depths. Rachel smiles and he sees mischief sparkling.

"So, does that mean you want to go steady with me, Noah?"

He chuckles and mumbles a reply in a deep husky voice, before fusing their mouths together once more.

"Baby, I'm the handyman to your housewife!"


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

_Heya, Chapter 11, finally! Took some time, I hit a bit of a wall with that one. That being said, I've decided I'm gonna focus more on certain instances in the summer, cuz honestly, writing two entire months is gonna be a paaaaaaaaaaaain!_

_So, here's the first few, hope you enjoy!_

_gidget: I lived in the UK for some time, so I tend to spell most things in BE instead of AE, dunno if that's the reason. . . I usually let the spell-check run over all my stuff, but I think mine is not entirely complete, so that might also be a reason. . . plus of course my very own orthographical weaknesses, such as mattress :P_

_Thanks for pointing it out though, I'll try to work on that one = ) Concrit is always welcomed and often even wished for_

_Disclaimer: Glee belongs to Fox, which I am not, so logically they don't belong to me, at all!_

After that tearful afternoon, the days drift into a sort of routine for both of them. They wake up in the morning, in a warm cocoon of happiness, the sun shining on both their faces. After a quick shower, both pop into the diner to say hey to Jay, who is slowly becoming their closest friend.

Later, they take strolls around the city, have lunch at the hot-dog stands, and just bask in the glory that is New York, imagining what it will be like when they are living here after graduation.

Sometime around 5 they usually walk over to the Razzmatazz, and start preparing for a busy night. Rachel warms up her voice, Noah gets behind the bar, cleans up and sets out tables.

Sometime around 2 in the morning they usually stumble home, half drunk on excitement and the simple thrill of being together, the other half plain underage drinking.

Other nights they just take what little money they have left after paying Rent and utilities and grab Jay and the others to crash on their roof, or sneak into College Parties and Underground clubs.

But as fun as all those nights may be, secretly both love the nights they spend by themselves the most. On the first Saturday they are together, they go to the movies, buy popcorn and drink sodas. Afterwards, he takes her for ice cream. It doesn't hold the same thrill of sneaking into parties, and it certainly isn't the fine wine and dining, but it's _them_ and that makes it perfect.

But there are also other days, particular instances which both remember more clearly. The first one which happens after their heartfelt confessions is Rachel's first ever solo-performance.

Of course, as a young prodigy with Broadway-ambitions, performing was nothing new. Her Ballad had pretty much secured their win at Sectionals. Since she has been four, she has performed in all types of musicals, recitals, in front of all crowds and pretty much everywhere. There is no reason for her to be nervous. She still is. Nervous as hell, her stomach is feeling like it is filled with bees, her throat is dry and she feels as though she is seeing everything and nothing at the same time. When she informs Noah of her worries, he laughs lightly.

"Rach, you'll be fine! Hell, you've basically spent half your life on the stage, what makes this different?" He grins.

"There are. . . like . . .people!" her confused answer and lack of extensive vocab makes him laugh even harder.

"Noah! Stop laughing!" She smacks him on the chest. "It is not funny! What if I am not good enough? What if I fail? What if I blow all my notes? I could lose this job, and your employment could be terminated by association! We would have to leave our apartment! We would be forced to sleep in your truck for the remainder of our stay! We could contract horrible diseases, such as pneumonia, which could ultimately culminate in the unforeseen death of one of us! AND I CANNOT HAVE YOUR DEATH ON MY CONSCIOUS AT THIS JUNCTURE IN MY LIFE! WE CANNOT DIE NOAH!!!!" By now her eyes have grown huge and she has grabbed his vest and pulled him down to her eye level. Noah thinks, not for the first time, why the fuck he had to fall in love with a girl with more issues than the entire casts of Gossip Girl and Twilight combined (he had endured a LOT for making out with Rachel…).

By now he has gotten used to her random freak-outs. He puts his hand on her shoulders, which are still heaving up and down and looks deep into her eyes.

"Rach, you'll be fine. You will go out there, you will sing the songs you and the band have rehearsed, you will kick ass doing it, you will not be fired, I will not be fired, and no one. Is. Gonna. Die." Noah has adopted his 'Rachel-voice', deep and reassuring. If she ever finds out he has an extra voice for her freak-out moments, he's pretty sure it'll get a whole lot higher.

"You can do this, babe. And I'll be right there, at the end of the room." He presses a kiss to her mouth, which soon escalates into a mini-make out session. After a few very enjoyable minutes, she breaks the kiss and leans her head against his chest.

"Thank you." With one last brilliant smile, she walks up to the small band area in the back.

"Good evening, everybody. My name is Caroline Pascall, and I will be singing for you tonight. The first song goes out to a very special someone here tonight." By now he's reached the bar and has started cleaning a few glasses (he honestly doesn't know how, but somehow, there are always glasses which need cleaning. . .).

The first few strands of Coltrane's My one and only love fills the room, and the simple fact that she is singing a song such as this to him, fills him with a warmth he can hardly describe. When Chris asks him what's wrong, Noah complains about how the constant smoke makes his eyes sting.

Another favorite memory is their first argument (Even months later she still maintains it wasn't not even really a fight, more a difference of opinions, expressed very . . . expressively. He simply nods along, because honestly, he'd have to be mindfucked to argue with Rachel about arguments).

It begins with him jokingly saying, he won't go back to Lima, to which Rachel calmly replies he better rethink that, because no College will accept him without a High School Diploma, no matter how much of a "Badass" or "Stud" is or how lovely his arms are. From there, it kinda spitballs. His self-doubts rear its ugly head, her still not entirely eliminated abrasive streak lets her snap, and before they know it they are in a full-blown argument in the middle of central park.

"Dammit, Rachel, we can't all be so freakishly focused like you! Some people actually have a life, you know?!?!?" It's a cheap shot, he knows, but he can't seem to stop himself. Neither can Rachel apparently.

"What is wrong with actually having goals and pursuing them!?!?! If you would actually apply yourself and stop acting like a jerk with no future, you would realize that you have the potential to be great!" Neither is pulling punches at this point.

"Well, if I'm acting like such a jerk with no future, why the fuck do you care then?!??!"  
"Because I happen to love you, you insufferable git!"

After that there is dead silence. No kidding, dead silence. The children surrounding them have been watching them for the past few seconds, the mothers are awaiting his reply with bated breaths, and the ice-cream vendor is ignoring his customers in favor of watching a high-school love drama unfold.

It takes them both a few seconds to realize the magnitude of her last statement.

"You . . . you love me?" his expression is caught between curiosity, confusion and a childlike wonderment. Rachel suddenly feels vulnerable and exposed. How could she have been so stupid? He would never love her, his entire life was in turmoil, she was just something good right now, he was in no place to devel --- Noah pretty effectively derails her train of thought by grabbing her, pressing a kiss to her lips and twirling her around like crazy.

When he sets her back down, she is still dizzy, too dizzy to notice the happy smiles on the faces of their audience. Noah actually drops on his knees in front of her (trying his hardest to ignore the fact that this position puts him effectively on eye-level with two of her most charming attributes).

"I love you baby! I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you!" He quickly rises and starts peppering her face with kisses and pulls her into a vice-like hug. Rachel can't help but wonder where they'll be in five years if all their fights end with big emotional revelations. . .

Another favourite, private moment of Noah's is the first time he truly realized how amazing life can be. For a guy who, up until three months, ago saw himself cleaning pools and working as hard as possible to raise a kid, thoughts like that one don't come easy. His entire life he had been stuck in Lima, believing himself to be better than another Lima Looser. In the back of his head, he had always doubted whether he would actually make it. In his world, wishes don't make realities.

The truth hits him, when he is walking down a random street somewhere in New York (usually they just buy a ticket for the subway and get off somewhere). His hand is laced with Rachel's and he listens to the soothing sound of her voice as she chatters on happily about nothing and everything.

The sun is shining, there seems to be for once not a single traffic jam in sight, and people are actually smiling. If a fucking Disney-Princess had strolled out of a friggin' carriage right about now, he wouldn't even have questioned it.

With a loopy smile, he grabs some quarters in his pocket to drop them into the can of the homeless guy, sitting on the stairs of the brownstone they are strolling past.

A few steps later, Noah sees a piece of paper taped to a light pole, declaring that a college student is looking for a roommate, and when he realizes that for a second he thinks about looking at it more closely, just to get some ideas for next year, it hits him like a ton of bricks.

He can actually do this. Noah Puckerman can leave Lima. The whole idea of ditching his hometown has always been kinda vague. So far, his idea of not becoming a Lima-loser had always stopped with Cleveland, but here he is, standing in the middle of a road, and he can think about all the places he can live. Usually he was always hesitant about leaving, mostly because of his mum and little sister.

This summer he could only ditch his normal life because Sarah had left for camp for the rest of the summer the morning he disappeared, and since his Mum was happily shacking up with his deadbeat of a dad, his guilt about leaving them both behind is smaller than he'd think. Plus, while he has texted his sister a few times, not telling her he had left town, his Mum had yet to call him. Rachel's Dads checked in every Sunday (he's kinda surprised that the College-thing works that well, so far he only knew four Colleges existed, but apparently there's a whole lot more, this week they are somewhere down south). But his Mum never even bothered sending him a text. The only people who wrote him were Mike and Matt, with whom he had fallen back into friendship after Brittany had mentioned the truth about Quinn to Mike and Santana who had told Matt. The only other person in contact with him is Quinn, but he really wishes she wouldn't.

The sheer dimension of possibilities is still running through his mind, when Rachel is nearly thrown backwards by his sudden stop. With a frown she turns to him, ready to make a sarcastic comment, when she notices his loopy smile and the kool-aid glaze on his eyes.

"Noah?" she asks, not a little worried.

No response.

"Noah? Are you okay?"

It takes her lightly touching his arm for him to come out of his daze.

"Are you okay? You looked very far away?" she trails of uncertainly, wondering if her babbling has made him think of greener pastures.

With a beaming smile he grabs her and twirls her around. Rachel has gotten used to that, it seems his default reaction whenever something particularly good has just occurred to him.

"More than fine, baby! More than fine!" He set her down, gives her a soft kiss and a smile, before grabbing the flyer from the street light and shoving it in his back pocket.

Rachel just looks at him with a confused frown. She has gotten used to most of his quirks, like his demand that she pushes her tooth paste from the back of the tube, or that he talks to his so-called 'guns' during the shower (that one was very, very awkward at first).

But sometimes this strange elation at the littlest of things is still a bit disconcerting. It makes being with him very unpredictable. The Rachel from three months ago would have balked at the idea of random outbursts of spontaneity, leading them into all kinds of trouble (like the one time he tried to steal a duck and was nearly arrested ("Come on, Rach, we can call it Thunderbird!") or when he almost got knifed by the jealous boyfriend of the drunk drag-queen with whom he, drunk as a skunk, sang a duet from the Rocky Horror Picture show on the train).

The new Rachel simply explained her role as his warden and his fake psychological condition (sociopathic counter social ornithophilia with pathological internalization of schizophrenic perceived external forces of subjective liberation (_"You callin' me crazy?!?!" – "No, just overly fond of birds. . _.") to the confused park-security and happily provides the necessary alto-harmony.

With a fond smile, she simply shakes her head and takes the hand he holds out for her, before they resume their stroll.

_Loved it, hated it? Lemme know, using that cute lil green button below ;)_


	12. Chapter 12

_Thanks for the awesome reviews guys, though I gotta be honest, I had honestly no clue that Salling's into birds….oh, well, didn't hurt apparently =)_

_I have kinda gotten hooked on Matt and Tina. . .I know it's probably the most random pairing there is, but I don't know, I think it could actually work, you know?_

_I figure another 7-8 chapters should be in the cards, not sure about the ending yet, I'm making this along as I go_

_Disclaimer: Glee belongs to Fox, not me…_

Chapter 12

They should have known that their little cocoon will be invaded sooner or later. At least that's what Rachel thinks when all of a sudden two voices, a male and a female one, are calling out their names and waving like crazy on the other side of the street. A quick glance confirms Rachel's suspicions; Matt and Tina are standing there and are on the verge of crossing the street to get to them.

Noah is all for walking along quickly, they are fairly close to the bar and even though he is pretty sure their boss has an idea neither of them is 21 (they get paid in Cash for Christ's sake!), openly acknowledging they are still in High School might just be too much.

Rachel agrees with his logic, albeit reluctantly, so Noah pulls his hood deep into his face and tucks Rachel closer to him, both walking off as quickly as possible without breaking into a full-out run.

In theory, it would have been a good plan. Sadly, neither of them had accounted for the fact that the friggin' Universe might just be against them having an easy day.

Right in front of them, some young kids on a skate-board crash into an old lady, who starts muttering in Yiddish when all her groceries end up on the street, right along with her.

With a sigh and a glance they agree they might as well give in, the alternative being either eternal damnation by their own conscious or in the afterlife.

Noah bends down and helps the woman up, while Rachel quickly collects her groceries.

A heartfelt thanks and an apple for each later, Tina and Matt are two feet away.

"Puck? Rachel?" Tina's voice is colored with incredulity.

With a sheepish smile, both turn around, Noah instinctively standing closer to Rachel. No one knew they were in New York, as far as everybody thought, Noah was cleaning pools and helping his grandma one town over, while Rachel. . .well, the only people who seemed to care about that were either on holiday themselves or standing right on front of them.

"Aaah, hey guys?" Rachel gives an apologetic wave, while Noah rubs a hand down his head.

"What are you doing here?!?!" Matt's deep baritone reflects his confusion.

With a heartfelt sigh, Noah shares a silent conversation with Rachel, both mutually agreeing that these two deserve the truth. Matt knew the whole Quinn-situation, but had no idea Puck had actually taken off or that his dad was back in town. Tina on the other hand was completely oblivious.

"How about we go grab a coffee?" He suggests with a (hopefully) winning smile.

Two minutes later, they are sitting in a generic store of a generic coffee chain, listening to generic music and drinking overpriced coffee, which has so many different things in it, neither of them can pronounce the names anymore.

The silence is deafening and awkward. Noah is sort of counting on Rachel to break it, since she can't seem to stop talking at the most inopportune times (so she's rubbing off on him, he's just lazy, not Finn!).

Oddly enough it's Matt who decides to say the first thing.

"Soooo. . .why are you in New York?"

"We wanted to go to San Francisco and took the wrong exit." He deadpans, earning himself a smack from Rachel.

"No, seriously dude, what are you doing here?" Noah tenses next to Rachel, her hand reflexively coming to rest on his forearm. The move doesn't go unnoticed by Matt or Tina.

"There were circumstances which arose without any prior indication, which prompted us to depart from Lima at a rather hasty pace, due to an unfortunate state of mind resulting directly from aforementioned ---"

"Lima sucked." Noah cuts across her rant. With a rakish grin, he winks at her.

"Noah!"

"Sorry, babe, you took too long!"

"Well, I was trying to ease into it!"

"Well, I eased into AND out of it, and it took me a whole bunch of words less!"

"Well, yes, but that is beside the point!"  
"Then, what's the point?"

Rachel huffs and gets that look on her face, the one which usually means a fit of diva-epic proportions. Noah simply slings an arm around her shoulder, pulls her close and drops a kiss on top of her head. With a huff, Rachel seems to calm down. Matt and Tina simply observed the banter with amused smiles.

"How 'bout you go first?" Noah asks Matt, unsure how much Tina knows and how much he wants her to know.

Matt takes a sip from his milkshake, before launching into their story.

"Well, Tina and I bumped into each other during an Art Program in San Francisco."

"I didn't know you were interested in Art?" Rachel asks, while simultaneously pressing down on Noah's arm to stop him from making the usual Puck-style comments.

He shoots her a warm look.

"He's been doing it since Middle School." Noah says calmly, surprising both Rachel and Tina. Neither of them questions it though, because Matt and Noah share a look.

Thing is, many people think Finn is Noah's best friend, and to a large extent that's true. Finn's been there for a lot of things, they can talk about stuff and he knows that Finn has his back (or at least used to). But Matt somehow just gets him (in a totally non-gay way of course!).

The kid's silent, doesn't say much, but somehow Matt's been there too. Matt was the one who suggested learning the guitar after his Dad split. At first, Noah had laughed and called him a pansy (hey, he was eight, cut him some slack!). Matt had just stood there and waited it out, before telling him how his older brother had died in a car crash and some therapist had suggested painting. Since then he usually paints whenever he can, and somehow, it helped. Then he had gotten up and left Noah on his own, mulling over the suggestion. The next day he had learned how to play "Let it be" by the Beatles and hadn't stopped until his fingers started bleeding and the tears had stopped.

So, while Mike and Finn are their best friends, Matt and he are Bros, or at least that's what they called it back when they were 14.

"So, anyway, turns out both of us like Art and we met up in San Francisco a few days after summer began. We got talking and we had a lot in common, so we met up a few times and well. . ." Matt trails of slightly embarrassed, but Tina simply smiles at him and places her hand on his.

"So, when I went up to visit my aunt here in NY, I asked her to come along." He said, shooting her a smile and a warm look. Tina blushes, but returns his gaze.

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaw" Rachel just can't help herself. Her grin is so wide, Noah is kinda worried her face is going to split.

Matt blushes and turns to him.

"So, what about you guys?"

Noah heaves a sigh. It's still not easy talking about this shit, but somehow he's kinda glad that there's someone else to talk to. Still, he figures the band-aid approach is the best way to get through that stuff.

"Quinn's baby isn't mine, some douche from Church banged her before me. I found out because I walked into Brit's one day and he was giving her money for bills and signing adoption papers. Same day my Dad pops out of the woods and decides to come back to claim his father-of-the-year awards. Mum let him back in, so I split. Berry here couldn't resist my manliness, so she came with, otherwise she'd have run after my truck all the way to NY." He grins at her.

"That is a preposterous notion, Noah!" Comes her indignant reply.

"I would have stopped in Columbus."

All four laugh at that. Tina and Matt can't help but marvel at the change that has come about both of them. Puck seems less like a douche, and Rachel seems still like herself, but a more relaxed version.

They chat for another cup of coffee, before Noah and Rachel decide to show Matt and Tina around the city.

During their stroll through Central Park, Tina and Rachel have skipped ahead a few paces, chattering happily. Noah and Matt watch them with smiles. Noah clears his throat before broaching the topic. Luckily, Matt speaks Puckish.

"So, you and Tina, huh?" _(You guys dating?)_

"Yupp."

"You and San?" _(You playin' drums instead of Conga?)_  
"Broke up last day of school."  
"Your credit score?" _(Your Credit score?)_

"Huh? No, she went down to Texas for her Cousin's wedding. Said she knew a guy she used to go out with was comin', kinda like the one that got away."

"You ok?" _(You rebounding on Chang?)_

"Better than ok. San and I had fun, but we both knew it wasn't anything long-term."

"With Tina?" _(You better be serious about her)_

"I don't know . . . she's different . . . she gets me you know?" Oh boy does he ever. Matt smiles modestly.

"With San, it was fun. With Tina, it's like . . . honest. It seems . . . serious." Noah nods.

"You know, Tina's nice n shit?" _You mess up, I'll put my guns to use._

"Dude, I'm dating her, I kinda figured that out along the way!" _I mess up, I'll put my own guns to use _Matt chuckles.

"Yeah . . . she's friends with Rachel, someone like that needs to be pretty darn good" _You mess up, I'll put my guns to use AND you have to deal with my girlfriend_

Matt nods. He kind of figured that Puck had a soft spot for Tina. She told him that her little brother and Puck's kid sister often hang out together, so the two are usually pretty friendly outside of school.

It's time to return the favor.

"So are you dating Rachel now?"

"Hell yeah!" _Yes_

"How come?"

"She's a hot Jew?"_ She's pretty awesome_

Matt is quiet for a moment.

"Rachel's pretty nice, too, you know?" _You mess up, I'll kick your ass_

"Duh. . ." _same here_

"Mike thinks she's pretty awesome" _Mike will gladly hold your arms while I break your nose_

"Chang got a crush on my girl?" _Tell him thanks for looking out for her._

"Nah, he's happy with Brit. . .So, you guys serious?"

"I love her." _I love her_

Matt just nods. He knows Noah has a lot more going on under the surface than most people assume, still, him openly admitting to actually loving a girl is kinda huge. Noah looks at him.

"So, you seen the game last night?"

And that right there is why Matt is Noah's friend. The guy just knows when to shut up. Chang is always yapping like a Chihuahua, and Finn more often than not has to talk, simply to ask question on what the hell's going on. Noah likes both of them just fine, but with all the shit in his life, Noah likes some peace and quiet more.

Unbeknownst to either of them, a similar conversation is taking place a few meters in front of them.

"So, why d-did you c-come to New Y-York?" From time to time Tina's stutter comes out, especially when she is nervous about something.

Rachel sighs.

"To be honest with you Tina, I was tired. I had spent my entire life single-mindedly pursuing my goals. I realized the night Noah came over that I had not actually experienced anything mildly adventurous; hence when he asked me to accompany with him into a venture with an unknown destination; I decided to be spontaneous for once in my life. So, here I am. . ." she trails of uncertainly.

Tina just smiles.

"I g-get it, Rachel. It was the same with me and S-San Francisco. I j-just had to get out of L-Lima for some time. And Art has always b-been my p-passion." Rachel spontaneously pulls Tina in a half-hug.

"I am incredibly happy for both of us, Tina!" She smiles widely, a gesture Tina reciprocates.

"So, you and Noah are dating a-again?" Rachel ducks her head and blushes.

"Yes. He has become a totally different person. He is nice, warm, friendly, funny, supportive. . ." she trails off with an embarrassed grin.

"So, you and Matt?" it's Tina's turn to blush, but she smiles happily nonetheless.

"He j-just talked to me, you know? He is really very t-talented . . . and he understood . . . did you know h-he was t-too shy to sp-speak up during the whole f-first grade? The other b-boys just thought it was c-c-cool." They share a chuckle.

"What about Artie?" Rachel hates to be the one to bring him up, but Tina is the closest female friend she has, and oddly enough, she knows it's the same way for her.

Tina shrugs.

"He hasn't really sp-spoken to me since I told him the truth. . ." she shrugs a little forlornly. Rachel understands, while she might be more than happy to be with Matt, Artie and Tina had been best friends for years. For him to just stop speaking to her is going to hurt, regardless of the nature of their relationship.

"Well, that's his loss." She states resolutely, nodding. Tina smiles gratefully.

"What about Finn?" Tina asks curiously. Pretty much the entire school knew about Rachel's crush on the quarterback. The words Carrie and Swim fan were used fairly often.

It suddenly dawns on Rachel that since getting into Noah's truck all those weeks ago, the sweet, tall quarterback has not been anywhere near her thoughts. Not that she expected him to be. Since discovering the true Noah, buried underneath layers of Puck, she has fallen in love with him a little more every single day.

When she says as much, Tina suddenly starts laughing.

"You make him sound like an a-a-artichoke!"

Rachel can't help it, she cracks up, too.

Suddenly she feels a pair of strong arms surrounding her midriff.

"What's so funny, babe?" he softly rumbles into her ear

She shares a look and a last chuckle with Tina.

"Nothing, Noah, nothing." She gives him a peck on the mouth, before ducking out of his arms and linking her arm with Tina's. Together they start skipping merrily down the road. Noah wonders if he's dating a girl or a friggin' cartoon character. Then he realizes it doesn't matter, as long as no one with an eraser comes along.

"You are sooo whipped!" Matt says next to him.

Noah smirks. "Dude, for a girl like that, I'll whip my cream into butter!"

A few seconds of awkward silence occur.

"That never happened?" Matt finally asks.

"Nope!" Noah nods decisively. Thank god Rutherford knows when to shut up.

Having Tina and Matt around for the next few days is oddly enough not nearly as weird as they both thought it would be. Out of all the people who could have found them, they are strangely relieved it's the two of them.

Noah and Rachel show them around the city, take them to the cheesecake factory, show them the club and introduce them to Jay, Don, Chris and the others.

Over the last few months they have managed to sort of develop a rag-tag band of low-level service industry workers, and it feels better to them than any of the so-called friendships in Glee, with a few choice exceptions of course.

When it is discovered that Matt and Tina are both in Glee, they cave to the demand of an impromptu jam-session.

Puck grabs his guitar, Rachel the bass (first time he was told she could play bass, he imagined her sitting there wearing nothing but his shirt and the guitar. . .half an hour later he could move again without serious pain).

Matt blushes when borrowing the Saxophone from one guy of the band and Tina slips behind the key-board. They count off the drummer, and before they know it, they are replacing the band for a night.

And though none of them get paid that night, they would never trade it for anything.

After two weeks, Tina and Matt have to go back to Lima. Making them Promise not to tell anybody about their location, Rachel and Noah bid them goodbye at the airport, both missing Lima for the first time since they've arrived in New York.

Noah slings an arm around her shoulder and presses a kiss to the side of her head.

"I love you, you know that?" Ever since his heartfelt confession in the Central Park, he can't stop saying it. Not in public, mind you, but when it's just them together, he showers her with it. Rachel suspects that, while he really truly does love her, he mostly says it to hear her say it back to him. Since she realized that, she tends to say it to him at least twice a day, just to remind him.

_So, whaddaya think? I know, I know, it keeps being fluffy, and honestly, I'm trying my hardest to get them down from that cotton-candy-unicorn-lala land I've sent them, but it keeps being fluffy. . .I find it very annoying myself ^^_


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

_So, here it is, finally! Chapter 13, it's more of a filler, but I kinda like it. I'm soooo sorry for not updating for almost two months, but uni's been crazy as hell and I've just not had the time to write anything, like, at all!_

_Disclaimer: Nothing's mine_

"Rach, baby, honey, darling, sweetheart, I love you, but don't do this to me!"

He is actually on his knees in front of her, begging, pleading, anything. Behind them, Chris is laughing his ass off.

It all began like this:

They had both arrived a little earlier that day, as it was raining, they had run most of the way.

Puck set about getting the bar ready, while Rachel walked over to the little stage area and began to work on a new song (_Temptations_ by Tom Waitts) with the guitarist.

After some time, Chris and he are done, and as every time, they pulled up two chairs and just listen to and watch Rachel perform.

It is undoubtedly the sexiest of any performances Noah has ever seen from his girl. The melody is deep and entrancing, the lyrics make him crave every forbidden pleasure he has ever wanted and the sensual tone of her voice and sway of her hips have him completely entranced.

She sashays around the room, flirts briefly with the guitar-guy and the bass-player, dances past Gary and the security guys, before ending in his lap.

It's nothing new, the fact that Rachel was his girl was pretty much well known since they first walked in.

She sits in his lap, finishes the song, and after the last note he leans up for a kiss, because honestly, he is so tightly wound he feels like a bedspring.

Rachel gives him a calculating look though, and seems oddly fixated on his forehead.

He whispers a sweet _I love you_ to her, which, thanks to her Mic, the entire bar hears. Fully expecting her to reciprocate, he is pretty confused when the next words from her mouth are:

"You need a hair cut."

So that's pretty much how he ends up in this position, begging her to leave him his Mohawk.

"Come on, baby, the 'hawk's badass! I am totally sexy with that look! Seriously, Mrs. Johnson only got a pool after I - - -" he trails off.

Rachel whips around.

"Yes? Please, do go on Noah. And forgive me for not being ecstatic about the fact that my boyfriend intends to retain a hairstyle for its fornication-value." He gulps.

"That's not what I meant, Baby. You're the only one for me, you know that. But seriously, Rach, the Mohawk?" he looks as though she is asking him to take Kurt to Prom.

"Noah, that ridiculous hair-cut of yours is not 'badass', as you so expletively term it, it simply looks as though your head is. . . mouldy!" His face turns offended.

"Hey, I thought you liked the Mohawk!"

"Yes, Noah, I am only dating you because of your hair." She dead-pans.

"Rachel, that haircut is, like, the essence of me! It's totally badass! I'm just gonna look like some other douchebag with big guns!"

"Noah, I have told you before, but I shall reiterate, your arms are lovely, but your hair is not. Plus, that is still better than a 'douchebag without guns', correct?" She turns back towards the stage, but he quickly picks her up.

"Berry, the 'hawk stays. I am a fuckin' sex god with this baby!"

"So your sexual prowess is related to your hair? Does that mean when you are bald you are. . . unable to perform. . .?" She scrunches her face slightly. Noah looks offended.

"What? No! I'm a sex god no matter what!"

"So, by logical conclusion, your hairstyle has little or no significance on your persona. . ."  
"But. . .I. . . Not cool!"

In the back the entire bar staff is laughing.

She raises herself on her tiptoes and presses a hard, passionate kiss to his mouth, eliciting catcalls from their colleagues.

"I promise I'll make it up to you. . ." she practically purrs.

Noah has a dazed look on his face when she pulls away. They might not have gone all the way yet, and he's pretty sure it's gonna be some time till they are, the mere thought of Rachel making up anything is enough to leave him speechless.

"Uuuuh. . ."

He snaps out of it though when Gary calls him whipped and Chris asks him about his Vagina. After a few more prodding comments by the guys, Noah has enough. He's a stud, goddammit! Yes, he's changed a helluva lot, but hell if his 'hawk is gonna stop flying!

"Rachel, the 'hawk stays! I am the man in this relationship, and I say my hair's good this way! End of Discussion!" He proclaims loudly, puffing his chest out. Gary and Chris slap him on the back.

"Excuse me?" Her voice is deceptively calm. Suddenly he realizes what he just said. 5'2 of pure Rachel – Berry in anger-mode crazy are coming his way, and hell, he might be a stud, but he's not suicidal.

Still, his mouth apparently is.

"I'm . . . the man?" it comes out as more of a question and Noah is surprised by the fact that he can still speak. However, angry Rachel doesn't make an appearance. Instead the only thing worse happens.

Her eyes become huge and a shimmer of liquid lies on them. Her mouth does this pouty thing, which usually he would find sexy, if he didn't know exactly what it means.

"Oh crap! Rach, uh, don't cry, I mean. . ." Noah has never been good with crying females. Happy tears, he can deal with, crying out his name, sure, but honest-to-god crocodile tears usually send him running for the hills. But this is Rachel, he tells himself.

He takes a step towards her, but it just seems to set her off into even higher wails.

"Y-y-you d-d-d-d-don't even care what I think!" She has tears running down her cheeks now, her arms flailing around uselessly and she manages to look so incredibly pitiful and toddler-like, that Chris starts looking for a candy, just to cheer her up.

Noah makes calming motions with his arms.

"Rach, baby, please, that's not it at all!" Wrong thing to say, apparently, but somehow he thinks that pretty much anything would be wrong at this point.

"Y-y-you j-j-just want t-t-to look good for y-y-y-your st-stupid cougars!" He hardly understands her now, giant sobs are wracking her body, and Noah is starting to panic. He drops to his knees again, because a) he looks a lot more pathetic on the floor and b) he can stop any attacks on his manhood easier, if angry Rachel decides to make an appearance.

"Rachel, Babe, I love you! Just you!" He tries to pull her close but she resists. Still, he manages to put his hands on her waist, so he figures he's made some headway.

"b-but not as m-m-m-much as your st-stupid hair!" she wails at an even higher pitch, causing him to wince. So much for headway.

"Rach, babe, I love you tons more! Hell, if it makes you happy, I'll go bald! I'll cut the hawk, I promise, just please stop crying!" He pulls her close and she lets him.

"Okay." She suddenly chirps from above him, presses a kiss to his head and bounces away.

For a few seconds the relief is so overwhelming, he doesn't really notice what just happened.

"Wait, what?" He looks after her confusedly.  
"I believe the term is, gotcha?" Chris pipes up.

A few days later he insecurely scrubs his hand over his head. The Mohawk had grown out a lot, seeing as they didn't have the time or inclination to properly maintain it (there were far more enjoyable things to be done).

The hairdresser had pretty much given him a shortish haircut with a slightly elevated stripe in the middle. For the next few streets, he pretty much traipses after Rachel, shoulders hunched over, his hand continuously rubbing over his hair.

Hell, he's a fucking stud, but this shit? Ain't cool! His 'hawk was directly linked to his Mojo…He kinda feels like Austin Powers in the second movie, only with better teeth and way better hair.

After a few streets, Rachel huffs and turns around.

"Honestly, Noah. It is just hair. Your physical appeal has in no way been diminished, rather it has been enhanced as you no longer resemble an unkempt scoundrel."

He continues to look miserable and. . .good god, he is pouting at her! She feels her resolve weaken.

"Urgh!" With a scoff she resolutely walks back to him, kisses his lips and pulls him to a young woman walking her dog a few paces away.

"Ma`am? Excuse me?" The woman turns slightly confused, her manicured hands go to her designer-sunglasses and she pulls them down to the bridge of her nose.

"Yes?"

Rachel pushes him forward.

"Please, would you mind telling us whether or not my companion is physically appealing to you?" The woman gives Rachel a look as though she's grown an extra head. So does Puck as a matter of fact. The Fuck? His girlfriend goes around asking strangers whether he's hot??? That's just. . .weird. . .

"Huh?"

"My boyfriend here, do you find him physically appealing? And would you mind elaborating on his hairstyle?"

"Uuuuh. . ." The lady turns to him, and looks him up and down. Instinctively he preens a little and gives her a smirk.

"Sure, I guess. . .not quite my type, but I love the hair, slightly rebellious." Then she turns to Rachel and repeats the process a lot more lasciviously. With a saucy smile and a wink, she steps closer to her.

"You on the other hand are exactly my type." She winks, and Rachel gives her a bright smile, grabs Noah's hand and nods.

"Thank you, I am flattered, but I'm afraid I am quite firmly heterosexual. Nonetheless, I wish you all the best on your future romantic endeavors." With a last smile she pulls him away from the stranger and drags him down the street.

"Noah, as this has proven, your new haircut is not ridiculous. In fact, I believe it enhances your physical prowess, as you have just been demonstrated, even women attracted to the female sex find it attractive. . ." she continues to ramble on.

Puck for his part is not really listening. Sure, he grunts and nods at all the appropriate times. But his eyes are pretty glazed over and his head is completely occupied.

Losing the 'hawk? Pretty much a downer. Getting the fantasy of the girl he loves and is burning hotter for than gasoline with a damn sexy New York College student? Yeah, that raises his mood pretty easily. . .

_Whaddaya think? R+R people! You know the drill! I know it's a bit shorter, but it's better than nothing, aye?_


End file.
